Canadian scientists are playing a key role in groundbreaking discoveries about asteroid Bennu, thanks to their involvement in NASA’s OSIRIS-REx mission.
Three scientific articles published Tuesday in Nature Astronomy and Nature Geoscience reveal that Bennu contains stardust grains older than the solar system, interstellar organic matter likely formed beyond the solar system, and high-temperature minerals that originated closer to the Sun.
Canadian researchers, as part of the international science team, contributed to the studies based on samples collected from Bennu. A Canadian-built lidar instrument was used to help select the sampling site.
In exchange for this contribution, Canada will receive 4% of the asteroid material, becoming the fifth country to preserve and study a sample from space.
The Canadian Space Agency said the findings highlight the value of sample return missions like OSIRIS-REx, which provide unprecedented insight into the building blocks of the solar system and the origins of life.
