\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\tSurprising Phosphate Finding in NASA\u2019s OSIRIS-REx Asteroid Sample\t\t\t\t\t\t\t<\/h1>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n![\"Mineral](\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/osiris-rex-bennu-phosphate-figure-17-topleft.jpg?w=1536\")
<\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n\n\n\nA microscope image of a dark Bennu particle, about a millimeter long, with a crust of bright phosphate. To the right is a smaller fragment that broke off.<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\tCredits: <\/span>
\n\t\t\t\t\t\tFrom Lauretta & Connolly et al. (2024) Meteoritics & Planetary Science, doi:10.1111\/maps.14227.<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n\n- Early analysis of the asteroid Bennu sample returned by NASA\u2019s OSIRIS-REx mission has revealed dust rich in carbon, nitrogen, and organic compounds, all of which are essential components for life as we know it. Dominated by clay minerals, particularly serpentine, the sample mirrors the type of rock found at mid-ocean ridges on Earth.<\/li>\n
- The magnesium-sodium phosphate found in the sample hints that the asteroid could have splintered off from an ancient, small, primitive ocean world. The phosphate was a surprise to the team because the mineral had not been detected by the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft while at Bennu.<\/li>\n
- While a similar phosphate was found in the asteroid Ryugu sample delivered by JAXA\u2019s (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) Hayabusa2 mission in 2020, the magnesium-sodium phosphate detected in the Bennu sample stands out for its purity (that is, the lack of other materials included in the mineral) and the size of its grains, unprecedented in any meteorite sample.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n
Scientists have eagerly awaited the opportunity to dig into the 4.3-ounce (121.6-gram) pristine asteroid Bennu sample collected by NASA\u2019s OSIRIS-REx (Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification, and Security \u2013 Regolith Explorer) mission since it was delivered to Earth last fall. They hoped the material would hold secrets of the solar system\u2019s past and the prebiotic chemistry that might have led to the origin of life on Earth. An early analysis of the Bennu sample, published June 26 in Meteoritics & Planetary Science<\/a>, demonstrates this excitement was warranted.<\/p>\nThe OSIRIS-REx Sample Analysis Team found that Bennu contains the original ingredients that formed our solar system. The asteroid\u2019s dust is rich in carbon and nitrogen, as well as organic compounds, all of which are essential components for life as we know it. The sample also contains magnesium-sodium phosphate, which was a surprise to the research team, because it wasn\u2019t seen in the remote sensing data collected by the spacecraft at Bennu. Its presence in the sample hints that the asteroid could have splintered off from a long-gone, tiny, primitive ocean world.<\/p>\n
A Phosphate Surprise<\/strong><\/h2>\nAnalysis of the Bennu sample unveiled intriguing insights into the asteroid\u2019s composition. Dominated by clay minerals, particularly serpentine, the sample mirrors the type of rock found at mid-ocean ridges on Earth, where material from the mantle, the layer beneath Earth\u2019s crust, encounters water.<\/p>\n
This interaction doesn\u2019t just result in clay formation; it also gives rise to a variety of minerals like carbonates, iron oxides, and iron sulfides. But the most unexpected discovery is the presence of water-soluble phosphates. These compounds are components of biochemistry for all known life on Earth today.<\/p>\n
\n\n\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/06\/osiris-rex-bennu-phosphate-figure-17.jpg?w=2048\")
<\/a><\/figure>\nA tiny fraction of the asteroid Bennu sample returned by NASA\u2019s OSIRIS-REx mission, shown in microscope images. The top-left pane shows a dark Bennu particle, about a millimeter long, with an outer crust of bright phosphate. The other three panels show progressively zoomed-in views of a fragment of the particle that split off along a bright vein containing phosphate, captured by a scanning electron microscope.<\/div>\nFrom Lauretta & Connolly et al. (2024) Meteoritics & Planetary Science, doi:10.1111\/maps.14227.<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\nWhile a similar phosphate was found in the asteroid Ryugu sample delivered by JAXA\u2019s (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) Hayabusa2 mission in 2020, the magnesium-sodium phosphate detected in the Bennu sample stands out for its purity \u2014 that is, the lack of other materials in the mineral \u2014 and the size of its grains, unprecedented in any meteorite sample.<\/p>\n
The finding of magnesium-sodium phosphates in the Bennu sample raises questions about the geochemical processes that concentrated these elements and provides valuable clues about Bennu\u2019s historic conditions.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe presence and state of phosphates, along with other elements and compounds on Bennu, suggest a watery past for the asteroid,\u201d said Dante Lauretta, co-lead author of the paper and principal investigator for OSIRIS-REx at the University of Arizona, Tucson. \u201cBennu potentially could have once been part of a wetter world. Although, this hypothesis requires further investigation.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOSIRIS-REx gave us exactly what we hoped: a large pristine asteroid sample rich in nitrogen and carbon from a formerly wet world,\u201d said Jason Dworkin<\/a>, a co-author on the paper and the OSIRIS-REx project scientist at NASA\u2019s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland.<\/p>\nFrom a Young Solar System<\/strong><\/h2>\nDespite its possible history of interaction with water, Bennu remains a chemically primitive asteroid, with elemental proportions closely resembling those of the Sun.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe sample we returned is the largest reservoir of unaltered asteroid material on Earth right now,\u201d said Lauretta.<\/p>\n
This composition offers a glimpse into the early days of our solar system, over 4.5 billion years ago. These rocks have retained their original state, having neither melted nor resolidified since their inception, affirming their ancient origins.<\/p>\n
Hints at Life\u2019s Building Blocks<\/strong><\/strong><\/h2>\nThe team has confirmed the asteroid is rich in carbon and nitrogen. These elements are crucial in understanding the environments where Bennu\u2019s materials originated and the chemical processes that transformed simple elements into complex molecules, potentially laying the groundwork for life on Earth.<\/p>\n
\u201cThese findings underscore the importance of collecting and studying material from asteroids like Bennu \u2014 especially low-density material that would typically burn up upon entering Earth\u2019s atmosphere,\u201d said Lauretta. \u201cThis material holds the key to unraveling the intricate processes of solar system formation and the prebiotic chemistry that could have contributed to life emerging on Earth.\u201d<\/p>\n
What\u2019s Next<\/strong><\/h2>\nDozens more labs in the United States and around the world will receive portions of the Bennu sample from NASA\u2019s Johnson Space Center in Houston in the coming months, and many more scientific papers describing analyses of the Bennu sample are expected in the next few years from the OSIRIS-REx Sample Analysis Team.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Bennu samples are tantalizingly beautiful extraterrestrial rocks,\u201d said Harold Connolly, co-lead author on the paper and OSIRIS-REx mission sample scientist at Rowan University in Glassboro, New Jersey. \u201cEach week, analysis by the OSIRIS-REx Sample Analysis Team provides new and sometimes surprising findings that are helping place important constraints on the origin and evolution of Earth-like planets.\u201d<\/p>\n
Launched on Sept. 8, 2016, the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft traveled to near-Earth asteroid Bennu and collected a sample of rocks and dust from the surface. OSIRIS-REx, the first U.S. mission to collect a sample from an asteroid, delivered the sample to Earth on Sept. 24, 2023.<\/p>\n
NASA\u2019s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, provided overall mission management, systems engineering, and the safety and mission assurance for OSIRIS-REx. Dante Lauretta of the University of Arizona, Tucson, is the principal investigator. The university leads the science team and the mission\u2019s science observation planning and data processing. Lockheed Martin Space in Littleton, Colorado, built the spacecraft and provided flight operations. Goddard and KinetX Aerospace were responsible for navigating the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft. Curation for OSIRIS-REx takes place at NASA Johnson. International partnerships on this mission include the OSIRIS-REx Laser Altimeter instrument from CSA (Canadian Space Agency) and asteroid sample science collaboration with JAXA\u2019s Hayabusa2 mission. OSIRIS-REx is the third mission in NASA\u2019s New Frontiers Program, managed by NASA\u2019s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, for the agency\u2019s Science Mission Directorate in Washington.<\/em><\/p>\nFind more information about NASA\u2019s OSIRIS-REx mission at:<\/p>\n
https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/osiris-rex<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\nBy Mikayla\u00a0Mace Kelley
University of Arizona, Tucson<\/strong><\/p>\nNews Media Contacts<\/strong><\/p>\nKaren Fox \/ Erin Morton
NASA Headquarters, Washington
202-385-1287 \/ 202-805-9393
karen.c.fox@nasa.gov<\/a>\u00a0\/\u00a0erin.morton@nasa.gov<\/a> \u00a0<\/p>\nRani Gran
NASA\u2019s Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md.
301-332-6975
rani.c.gran@nasa.gov<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n\n\nShare<\/h2>\n<\/p><\/div>\n\n
<\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\tFrom Lauretta & Connolly et al. (2024) Meteoritics & Planetary Science, doi:10.1111\/maps.14227.<\/span>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n
- \n
- Early analysis of the asteroid Bennu sample returned by NASA\u2019s OSIRIS-REx mission has revealed dust rich in carbon, nitrogen, and organic compounds, all of which are essential components for life as we know it. Dominated by clay minerals, particularly serpentine, the sample mirrors the type of rock found at mid-ocean ridges on Earth.<\/li>\n
- The magnesium-sodium phosphate found in the sample hints that the asteroid could have splintered off from an ancient, small, primitive ocean world. The phosphate was a surprise to the team because the mineral had not been detected by the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft while at Bennu.<\/li>\n
- While a similar phosphate was found in the asteroid Ryugu sample delivered by JAXA\u2019s (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) Hayabusa2 mission in 2020, the magnesium-sodium phosphate detected in the Bennu sample stands out for its purity (that is, the lack of other materials included in the mineral) and the size of its grains, unprecedented in any meteorite sample.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<\/div>\n
Scientists have eagerly awaited the opportunity to dig into the 4.3-ounce (121.6-gram) pristine asteroid Bennu sample collected by NASA\u2019s OSIRIS-REx (Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification, and Security \u2013 Regolith Explorer) mission since it was delivered to Earth last fall. They hoped the material would hold secrets of the solar system\u2019s past and the prebiotic chemistry that might have led to the origin of life on Earth. An early analysis of the Bennu sample, published June 26 in Meteoritics & Planetary Science<\/a>, demonstrates this excitement was warranted.<\/p>\n
The OSIRIS-REx Sample Analysis Team found that Bennu contains the original ingredients that formed our solar system. The asteroid\u2019s dust is rich in carbon and nitrogen, as well as organic compounds, all of which are essential components for life as we know it. The sample also contains magnesium-sodium phosphate, which was a surprise to the research team, because it wasn\u2019t seen in the remote sensing data collected by the spacecraft at Bennu. Its presence in the sample hints that the asteroid could have splintered off from a long-gone, tiny, primitive ocean world.<\/p>\n
A Phosphate Surprise<\/strong><\/h2>\n
Analysis of the Bennu sample unveiled intriguing insights into the asteroid\u2019s composition. Dominated by clay minerals, particularly serpentine, the sample mirrors the type of rock found at mid-ocean ridges on Earth, where material from the mantle, the layer beneath Earth\u2019s crust, encounters water.<\/p>\n
This interaction doesn\u2019t just result in clay formation; it also gives rise to a variety of minerals like carbonates, iron oxides, and iron sulfides. But the most unexpected discovery is the presence of water-soluble phosphates. These compounds are components of biochemistry for all known life on Earth today.<\/p>\n
\n\n\n<\/a><\/figure>\n A tiny fraction of the asteroid Bennu sample returned by NASA\u2019s OSIRIS-REx mission, shown in microscope images. The top-left pane shows a dark Bennu particle, about a millimeter long, with an outer crust of bright phosphate. The other three panels show progressively zoomed-in views of a fragment of the particle that split off along a bright vein containing phosphate, captured by a scanning electron microscope.<\/div>\nFrom Lauretta & Connolly et al. (2024) Meteoritics & Planetary Science, doi:10.1111\/maps.14227.<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\nWhile a similar phosphate was found in the asteroid Ryugu sample delivered by JAXA\u2019s (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) Hayabusa2 mission in 2020, the magnesium-sodium phosphate detected in the Bennu sample stands out for its purity \u2014 that is, the lack of other materials in the mineral \u2014 and the size of its grains, unprecedented in any meteorite sample.<\/p>\n
The finding of magnesium-sodium phosphates in the Bennu sample raises questions about the geochemical processes that concentrated these elements and provides valuable clues about Bennu\u2019s historic conditions.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe presence and state of phosphates, along with other elements and compounds on Bennu, suggest a watery past for the asteroid,\u201d said Dante Lauretta, co-lead author of the paper and principal investigator for OSIRIS-REx at the University of Arizona, Tucson. \u201cBennu potentially could have once been part of a wetter world. Although, this hypothesis requires further investigation.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cOSIRIS-REx gave us exactly what we hoped: a large pristine asteroid sample rich in nitrogen and carbon from a formerly wet world,\u201d said Jason Dworkin<\/a>, a co-author on the paper and the OSIRIS-REx project scientist at NASA\u2019s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland.<\/p>\n
From a Young Solar System<\/strong><\/h2>\n
Despite its possible history of interaction with water, Bennu remains a chemically primitive asteroid, with elemental proportions closely resembling those of the Sun.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe sample we returned is the largest reservoir of unaltered asteroid material on Earth right now,\u201d said Lauretta.<\/p>\n
This composition offers a glimpse into the early days of our solar system, over 4.5 billion years ago. These rocks have retained their original state, having neither melted nor resolidified since their inception, affirming their ancient origins.<\/p>\n
Hints at Life\u2019s Building Blocks<\/strong><\/strong><\/h2>\n
The team has confirmed the asteroid is rich in carbon and nitrogen. These elements are crucial in understanding the environments where Bennu\u2019s materials originated and the chemical processes that transformed simple elements into complex molecules, potentially laying the groundwork for life on Earth.<\/p>\n
\u201cThese findings underscore the importance of collecting and studying material from asteroids like Bennu \u2014 especially low-density material that would typically burn up upon entering Earth\u2019s atmosphere,\u201d said Lauretta. \u201cThis material holds the key to unraveling the intricate processes of solar system formation and the prebiotic chemistry that could have contributed to life emerging on Earth.\u201d<\/p>\n
What\u2019s Next<\/strong><\/h2>\n
Dozens more labs in the United States and around the world will receive portions of the Bennu sample from NASA\u2019s Johnson Space Center in Houston in the coming months, and many more scientific papers describing analyses of the Bennu sample are expected in the next few years from the OSIRIS-REx Sample Analysis Team.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe Bennu samples are tantalizingly beautiful extraterrestrial rocks,\u201d said Harold Connolly, co-lead author on the paper and OSIRIS-REx mission sample scientist at Rowan University in Glassboro, New Jersey. \u201cEach week, analysis by the OSIRIS-REx Sample Analysis Team provides new and sometimes surprising findings that are helping place important constraints on the origin and evolution of Earth-like planets.\u201d<\/p>\n
Launched on Sept. 8, 2016, the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft traveled to near-Earth asteroid Bennu and collected a sample of rocks and dust from the surface. OSIRIS-REx, the first U.S. mission to collect a sample from an asteroid, delivered the sample to Earth on Sept. 24, 2023.<\/p>\n
NASA\u2019s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, provided overall mission management, systems engineering, and the safety and mission assurance for OSIRIS-REx. Dante Lauretta of the University of Arizona, Tucson, is the principal investigator. The university leads the science team and the mission\u2019s science observation planning and data processing. Lockheed Martin Space in Littleton, Colorado, built the spacecraft and provided flight operations. Goddard and KinetX Aerospace were responsible for navigating the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft. Curation for OSIRIS-REx takes place at NASA Johnson. International partnerships on this mission include the OSIRIS-REx Laser Altimeter instrument from CSA (Canadian Space Agency) and asteroid sample science collaboration with JAXA\u2019s Hayabusa2 mission. OSIRIS-REx is the third mission in NASA\u2019s New Frontiers Program, managed by NASA\u2019s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, for the agency\u2019s Science Mission Directorate in Washington.<\/em><\/p>\n
Find more information about NASA\u2019s OSIRIS-REx mission at:<\/p>\n
https:\/\/www.nasa.gov\/osiris-rex<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n
By Mikayla\u00a0Mace Kelley
University of Arizona, Tucson<\/strong><\/p>\nNews Media Contacts<\/strong><\/p>\n
Karen Fox \/ Erin Morton
NASA Headquarters, Washington
202-385-1287 \/ 202-805-9393
karen.c.fox@nasa.gov<\/a>\u00a0\/\u00a0erin.morton@nasa.gov<\/a> \u00a0<\/p>\nRani Gran
NASA\u2019s Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md.
301-332-6975
rani.c.gran@nasa.gov<\/a><\/p>\n\n\n \n\n\n\nShare<\/h2>\n<\/p><\/div>\n
\n