Two months after its discovery, NASA still hasn’t been able to open the container containing the asteroid samples.
So after the space agency launched a probe to the asteroid Bennu in September, it brought back special rock and dust samples to Earth.
These space rocks are said to hold clues about the origins of the solar system and may help answer important questions about how our planet formed. Gizmodo.
If NASA could actually crack it, that would be pretty cool.
The team has spent months preparing to study this popular sample, but the Touch-and-Go Sample Acquisition Mechanism (TAGSAM) cannot currently be opened and accessed.
NASA had previously announced on October 20th: “Last week, a team at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston confirmed that most of the rocks and dust collected by the spacecraft in 2020 We have changed our approach to opening TAGSAM heads.
“After multiple removal attempts, the team discovered that two of the 35 fasteners on the TAGSAM head could not be removed using the current tools approved for use in OSIRIS-REx gloveboxes. .”
Obtaining this sample would be a pretty big deal. This is reportedly NASA’s first attempt to recover samples from an asteroid in space.
So the pieces of Bennu have to be sealed in this container, sent here to Earth, and handled through a very special glovebox that is filled with nitrogen to prevent contamination.
So any tools you use should fit inside, but they won’t exactly help you try anything to open it.
After two months, the team had access to only 70.3 grams of rock and dust from the outside and inside of the sample head.
In addition, some of the samples are now also accessible through mylar flaps.
![Credit: NASA](https://images.ladbible.com/resize?type=jpeg&quality=70&width=648&fit=contain&gravity=null&url=https://images.ladbiblegroup.com/v3/assets/bltcd74acc1d0a99f3a/blt1b9bf417d66cdb94/657f0c51ea940e040aa32392/Screenshot_2023-12-17_at_14.57.03.png)
But it’s not all bad for NASA. This is because he actually significantly exceeded his original goal of gaining 60 grams.
However, a significant portion of the sample is apparently still trapped within the container, with a total amount estimated to be 250 grams of dust and rock.
Two of TAGSAM’s 35 fasteners reportedly could not be removed using approved tools because the nifty glovebox blocked the necessary access.
Initial analyzes of the samples reportedly found “abundances of carbon and water molecules,” supporting the theory that “the building blocks of life may have reached Earth via asteroids.” Masu.
In fact, NASA stopped penetrating canisters in November and is now focusing on classifying new tools to open them.
Honestly, what a nightmare. It’s like receiving a Christmas present that you can’t open.