{"id":18795,"date":"2017-09-23T01:33:55","date_gmt":"2017-09-22T17:33:55","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wp-productionenv-bjg9h2g2bgg5b8aa.southeastasia-01.azurewebsites.net\/news\/osiris-rex-probe-buzzes-earth-on-its-way-to-an-asteroid-and-earthlings-wave-back\/"},"modified":"2017-09-23T01:33:55","modified_gmt":"2017-09-22T17:33:55","slug":"osiris-rex-probe-buzzes-earth-on-its-way-to-an-asteroid-and-earthlings-wave-back","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/starpath.global\/news\/osiris-rex-probe-buzzes-earth-on-its-way-to-an-asteroid-and-earthlings-wave-back\/","title":{"rendered":"OSIRIS-REx probe buzzes Earth on its way to an asteroid \u2013 and earthlings wave back"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"OSIRIS-REx\"
Artwork shows NASA\u2019s OSIRIS-REx spacecraft passing by Earth. (NASA GSFC \/ Univ. of Arizona Illustration)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

NASA\u2019s OSIRIS-REx spacecraft took pictures \u2014 and had its picture taken \u2014 as it zoomed past Earth today on its way to the asteroid Bennu.<\/p>\n

The close encounter served as much more than a photo op: OSIRIS-REx\u2019s gravity-assist maneuver was an essential part of its trajectory toward Bennu, a near-Earth asteroid that\u2019s currently more than 31 million miles away.<\/p>\n

OSIRIS-REx came as close as 10,711 miles to Earth at 9:52 a.m. PT, blazing over Antarctica at a relative speed of 19,000 mph. That\u2019s so close that NASA had to take care to make sure the 20-foot-wide spacecraft didn\u2019t hit any orbiting satellites.<\/p>\n

The maneuver boosted OSIRIS-REx\u2019s speed and shifted its course to put it on track to rendezvous with the 1,650-foot-wide asteroid in late 2018.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe Earth Gravity Assist is a clever way to move the spacecraft onto Bennu\u2019s orbital plane using Earth\u2019s own gravity instead of expending fuel,\u201d the University of Arizona\u2019s Dante Lauretta, who is the principal investigator for the $800 million OSIRIS-REx mission, said in a NASA news release.<\/p>\n

OSIRIS-REx is a tortured acronym that stands for \u201cOrigins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification and Security \u2013 Regolith Explorer.\u201d The craft is designed to map the asteroid\u2019s surface, collect samples and return them to Earth in 2023.<\/p>\n

Scientists expect the mission to help them gain a better understanding of how asteroids fit into the tale of the solar system\u2019s origins, what resources could be found in asteroids, and how to divert a potentially threatening asteroid. There\u2019s a slight possibility that Bennu itself could threaten Earth in the late 22nd century.<\/p>\n

This week, however, OSIRIS-REx and its target are causes for celebration: NASA encouraged astronomers to take pictures of the probe as it passed by, and urged space fans to post greetings on social media with the hashtag #HelloOSIRISREx.<\/p>\n

Doug Ellison, a visualization producer at NASA\u2019s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, captured a long-exposure image of OSIRIS-REx zooming through the view of a remotely operated telescope at Australia\u2019s Siding Spring Observatory:<\/p>\n

https:\/\/twitter.com\/doug_ellison\/status\/911284922484105216<\/p>\n

For more OSIRIS-REx snapshopts, keep an eye on the real-time image gallery at SpaceWeather.com.<\/p>\n

Meanwhile, the #HelloOSIRISREx selfies are streaming in from around the world. Here are a few greetings from Seattle\u2019s neck of the woods:<\/p>\n