The Green Comet and the asteroid OSIRIS-REx will dazzle in 2023
Asteroids are best known as rocky celestial bodies that revolve around the Sun.; astronomers can see them through telescopes and according to previous research they usually orbit in the Milky Wayand very close to the systems of mars and jupiter, where the asteroid belt is recorded. The NASA identifies them as small rocky bodies, better identified as the remains of the formation of the solar system, which appeared about 4.6 billion years ago, with the collapse of a large cloud of gas and dust. “Some of the condensing dust within the cloud became the planets. Objects in the asteroid belt never had a chance to join planets, and are remnants from that distant time when planets formed.” explains the National Aeronautics and Space Administration.
– Asteroids are not round like planets. They have jagged and irregular shapes.
– Some asteroids are hundreds of kilometers across, but most are as small as pebbles.
– Most are made of different types of rock, but some contain clay or metal, such as nickel and iron.
The Data! In 2016, NASA launched the spacecraft OSIRIS-REx to study a near-Earth asteroid called Bennu. After studying Bennu for a few years, OSIRIS-REx collected a sample of dust and rocks from the asteroid’s surface. Now, OSIRIS-REx is heading back to Earth! Your sample container will land in the Utah desert in September 2023. Scientists will then collect the container and examine the dust and rocks for clues about how planets formed and life began.