It is possible that the asteroid Bennu originated from the ocean world

Early analysis of a sample collected from Asteroid Bennu It suggests that this space rock had an unexpectedly water-rich, and even, past It could have been separated from the ancient ocean world.. the mission Osiris Rex The follower a pot The original 121.6-gram sample was collected from the asteroid in 2020 and returned to Earth in September of last year.

since then, Scientists have analyzed rocks and dust from the asteroid to uncover secrets they may hold about its composition. And whether it can bring the elements necessary for life to Earth.

An initial review of some of the samples, shared in October, suggested the asteroid contained a significant amount of carbon. During a new analysis The team discovered that Bennu’s dust, in addition to carbon, is rich in nitrogen and organic compounds, all of which are essential for life.. The components are also crucial to understanding how Earth-like planets evolve.

a Stady Details of the results appear in the journal. Meteorites and planetary science. “OSIRIS-REx has given us exactly what we expected: a large sample of a pristine, nitrogen- and carbon-rich asteroid from a formerly wet world.“, He said Jason DurkinProject World Osiris Rex At NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, in a statement.

The biggest surprise was finding sodium and magnesium phosphate inside the samplewhich are vehicles that were not found by remote sensing when Osiris Rex It was orbiting Bennu. This phosphate is an essential element in the biochemistry of life.

“The presence and state of phosphate, along with other elements and compounds on Bennu, indicate a watery past for the asteroid.“, he claimed. Dante Laurettaone of the principal investigators in Osiris Rex and regent professor at the University of Arizona, Tucson, in the statement.

Asteroid sample It is composed mainly of clay minerals, including serpentine, making the sample remarkably similar to rocks found in mid-ocean ridges on Earth.These ridges are where material from the mantle, the layer below the Earth’s crust, meets water.

The rocks collected on Bennu represent a time capsule from the early days of the solar system dating back more than 4.5 billion years. “The sample we returned is the largest deposit of unaltered asteroid material on Earth at this time.Loretta said.

Astronomers believe that space rocks such as asteroids and comets Perhaps they were ancient messengers in our solar system.

according to Nick TimmsSample Analysis Team Member Osiris Rex Associate Professor in the School of Earth and Planetary Sciences at Curtin University:Such stars may have played a key role in providing water and the building blocks of life on Earth.“

Investigate results like this. It is important to study the asteroid’s materialEspecially low-density materials that usually burn up when they enter the Earth’s atmosphere.

“This material holds the key to unraveling the complex formation processes of the solar system and the prebiotic chemistry that may have contributed to the emergence of life on Earth.“Loretta said,”

The richness of material collected from the asteroid means so More laboratories around the world will receive their own sample pieces for study.

Bennu’s samples are extraterrestrial rocks of stunning beauty.“, he claimed Harold Connolly Jr.sample mission world Osiris Rex and chair of the Department of Geology at Rowan University’s School of Earth and Environment in Glassboro, New Jersey, said in this statement.