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NASA NTRS2020

Visible-near Infrared Spectral Indices for Mapping Mineralogy and Chemistry with OSIRIS-Rex

The primary objective of the Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification, and Security–Regolith Explorer (OSIRIS-REx) mission is to return to Eartha pristine sample of carbonaceous material from the primitive asteroid (101955) Bennu. To support compositional mapping of Bennu as part of sample site selection and characterization, we tested 95 spectral indices on visible to near infrared laboratory reflectance data from minerals and carbonaceous meteorites. Our aim was to determine which indices reliably identify spectral features of interest. Most spectral indices had high positive detection rates when applied to spectra of pure, single-component materials. The meteorite spectra have fewer and weaker absorption features and, as a result, fewer detections with the spectral indices. Indices targeting absorptions at 0.7 and 2.7–3lm, which are attributable to hydrated minerals, were most successful for the meteorites. Based on these results, we identified a set of 17 indices that are most likely to be useful at Bennu. These indices detect olivines, pyroxenes, carbonates, water/OH-bearing minerals, serpentines, ferric minerals, and organics. Particle size and albedo are known to affect band depth but had a negligible impact on interpretive success with spectral indices. Preliminary analysis of the disk-integrated Bennu spectrum with these indices is consistent with expectations given the observed absorption near 3lm. Our study prioritizes spectral indices to be used for OSIRIS-REx spectral analysis and mapping and informs the reliability of all index-derived data products, including a science value map for sample site selection.

Hannah H. Kaplan↗
NASA NTRS2020

Visible–near infrared spectral indices for mapping mineralogy and chemistry with OSIRIS-REx

The primary objective of the Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification, and Security–Regolith Explorer (OSIRIS-REx) mission is to return to Earth a pristine sample of carbonaceous material from the primitive asteroid (101955) Bennu. To support compositional mapping of Bennu as part of sample site selection and characterization, we tested 95 spectral indices on visible to near infrared laboratory reflectance data from minerals and carbonaceous meteorites. Our aim was to determine which indices reliably identify spectral features of interest. Most spectral indices had high positive detection rates when applied to spectra of pure, single-component materials. The meteorite spectra have fewer and weaker absorption features and, as a result, fewer detections with the spectral indices. Indices targeting absorptions at 0.7 and 2.7–3 µm, which are attributable to hydrated minerals, were most successful for the meteorites. Based on these results, we identified a set of 17 indices that are most likely to be useful at Bennu. These indices detect olivines, pyroxenes, carbonates, water/OH-bearing minerals, serpentines, ferric minerals, and organics. Particle size and albedo are known to affect band depth but had a negligible impact on interpretive success with spectral indices. Preliminary analysis of the disk-integrated Bennu spectrum with these indices is consistent with expectations given the observed absorption near 3 lm. Our study prioritizes spectral indices to be used for OSIRIS-REx spectral analysis and mapping and informs the reliability of all index-derived data products, including a science value map for sample site selection.

Hannah H. Kaplan↗
NASA NTRS2021

Derivation of the final OSIRIS-REx OVIRS in-flight radiometric calibration

The OSIRIS-REx Visible and InfraRed Spectrometer (OVIRS) operates over the ∼0.4- to 4.3-μm wavelength range. Radiometric calibration over this broad range requires the use of multiple calibration sources. Initial OVIRS in-flight calibration coefficients were previously computed using ground calibration from visible integrating sphere and IR blackbody sources, cross-calibrated with Earth-observing satellites for visible wavelengths, and adjusted using the spectrum of the OSIRIS-REx mission’s target body, asteroid (101955) Bennu. As part of the final in-flight calibration, we determined that the best calibration method removes out-of-band IR signal leakage prior to radiometric calibration and updated the calibration coefficients accordingly. These final calibration coefficients work well for data where the field of view is filled, and we document the possible artifacts in underfilled spots.

Amy A. Simon↗
NASA NTRS2021

OSIRIS-REx Extended Mission Trajectory Design & Target Search

After jettisoning its Sample Return Capsule (SRC) containing regolith samples from the near-Earth asteroid (101955) Bennu to Earth in September 2023, the Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification, and Security–Regolith Explorer (OSIRIS-REx) spacecraft will perform a divert maneuver and safely fly by Earth at an altitude of 250 km. SRC return and the divert maneuver officially mark the completion of the spacecraft’s primary mission; however, it will continue on in heliocentric orbit with a nearly fully-functional instrument suite and enough propellant for nearly 600 m/s Delta-V. The post-Earth flyby trajectory fortuitously enables an exciting extended mission opportunity: rendezvous with the near-Earth asteroid (99942)Apophis immediately following its historic Earth close approach in April 2029. In this paper, we detail the discovery, optimization, and analysis of the Apophis rendezvous trajectory for an extended OSIRIS-REx mission. We also present the technical approach for an alternate target search and corresponding results, assessing the alternate trajectories compared to the baseline Apophis rendezvous from a trajectory design standpoint.

Brian Sutter↗
NASA NTRS2021

Trajectory Design and Maneuver Performance of the OSIRIS-REx Low-Altitude Reconnaissance of Bennu

With more than a year of asteroid proximity operations, the OSIRIS-REx team was able to identify one primary and one backup site for sample collection. The next step was to finalize on-board, localized image libraries and site-specific terrain information prior to attempting sample acquisition. Collecting this information required additional, low-altitude asteroid flyby reconnaissance activities. These activities, referred to as ‘sorties’, involved special maneuver and trajectory designs, unique from any other OSIRIS-REx maneuver activity. In order to minimize time between flybys and decrease the total number of maneuvers required, this trajectory design departed from and returned to a frozen Sun-terminator plane orbit within the span of a few hours. This work discusses the trajectory design and performance of the four flybys that were used to collect key topographic science observations of the primary and backup sample sites, which helped lead to a successful sample collection.

Andrew Levine↗
NASA NTRS2021

Small-Body Proximity Operations & TAG: Navigation Experiences & Lessons Learned from the OSIRIS-REx Mission

On October 20th, 2020, the nearly two-year proximity operations campaign for the Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification, and Security–Regolith Explorer (OSIRIS-REx)mission at the near-Earth asteroid (101955) Bennu culminated in a successful Touch-and-Go (TAG) sample collection event. Navigation performance was a significant driver for flight activities at Bennu, which consisted of multiple phases geared towards characterizing the asteroid, selecting a sample site, and safely guiding the spacecraft to and from the surface in order to collect at least 60 g of pristine regolith. The entire operations team gained a tremendous amount of experience operating in the challenging small body environment and overcame many challenges. In this paper, we summarize navigation-focused experiences and lessons learned from OSIRIS-REx proximity operations at Bennu that are applicable to future missions to small asteroids, comets, and planetary moons. Areas of focus include staffing and organization, ground system infrastructure, mission phase planning, navigation operations, and spacecraft and payload considerations.

Kenneth M. Getzandanner↗
NASA NTRS2021

OSIRIS-REx Proximity Operations and Navigation Performanceat (101955) Bennu

The NASA Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification, and Security–Regolith Explorer (OSIRIS-REx) spacecraft began close proximity operations at the small (500-m diameter) B-type asteroid (101955) Bennu in December 2018 and concluded in May 2021. Hundreds of grams of pristine surface regolith were collected on October 20, 2020, when the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft successfully executed the Touch and Go (TAG) sample collection sequence. The spacecraft touched down within 1 meter of the targeted site on the surface of Bennu. TAG was the culmination of over 2 years of navigation performance refinement as a result of extraordinary interagency teamwork between the Flight Dynamics System (FDS), science and spacecraft teams while in close proximity to Bennu. This paper will discuss the navigation processes, planning and performance during the proximity operations at Bennu.

Peter G. Antreasian↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

OSIRIS-REx Off-Nominal Re-entry Breakup Analysis

The Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification, Security, Regolith Explorer (OSIRIS-REx) is a NASA asteroid sampling mission that launched on September 8, 2016. Its objectives are to study the asteroid Bennu for up to 505 days and obtain at least 60 grams of pristine regolith. The sample return to Earth is planned for September 2023. For contingency planning and risk assessment of a potential off-nominal Earth-return trajectory, a re-entry breakup analysis was performed to determine the response of the spacecraft to the environment and predict the breakup sequence and timeline, debris survival, and debris impact conditions. The failure scenario assumed a failure to separate between the bus and the sample return capsule (SRC), resulting in the combined bus+SRC configuration for the re-entry vehicle. Furthermore, consistent overburns or underburns were considered to produce three sets of initial conditions for the analysis consisting of nominal, steep, and shallow entry flight path angles. The results were compared to the breakup analysis performed for a similar vehicle, the Stardust spacecraft, which returned samples from the comet Wild 2 in 2006. This paper describes the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft and presents the results of the re-entry breakup analysis.

reentry breakup analysis↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

OSIRIS-REx Proximity Operations and Navigation Performance at (101955) Bennu

The NASA Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification, and Security–Regolith Explorer (OSIRIS-REx) spacecraft began close proximity operations at the small (500-mdiameter) B-type asteroid (101955) Bennu in December 2018 and concluded in May 2021.Hundreds of grams of pristine surface regolith were collected on October 20, 2020, when the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft successfully executed the Touch and Go (TAG) sample collection sequence. The spacecraft touched down within 1 meter of the targeted site on the surface of Bennu. TAG was the culmination of over 2 years of navigation performance refinement as a result of extraordinary interagency teamwork between the Flight Dynamics System (FDS),science and spacecraft teams while in close proximity to Bennu. This paper will discuss the navigation processes, planning and performance during the proximity operations at Bennu.

Peter G Antresian↗
NASA NTRS2020

Prokaryotic and Fungal Characterization of the Facilities Used to Assemble, Test, and Launch the OSIRIS-REx Spacecraft

To characterize the ATLO (Assembly, Test, and Launch Operations) environment of the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft, we analyzed 17 aluminum witness foils and two blanks for bacterial, archaeal, fungal, and arthropod DNA. Under NASA’s Planetary Protection guidelines, OSIRIS-REx is a Category II outbound, Category V unrestricted sample return mission. As a result, it has no bioburden restrictions. However, the mission does have strict organic contamination requirements to achieve its primary objective of returning pristine carbonaceous asteroid regolith to Earth. Its target, near-Earth asteroid (101955) Bennu, is likely to contain organic compounds that are biologically available. Therefore, it is useful to understand what organisms were present during ATLO as part of the larger contamination knowledge effort—even though it is unlikely that any of the organisms will survive the multi-year deep space journey. Even though these samples of opportunity were not collected or preserved for DNA analysis, we successfully amplified bacterial and archaeal DNA (16S rRNA gene) from 16 of the 17 witness foils containing as few as 7 ± 3 cells per sample. Fungal DNA (ITS1) was detected in 12 of the 17 witness foils. Despite observing arthropods in some of the ATLO facilities, arthropod DNA (COI gene) was not detected. We observed 1,009 bacterial and archaeal sOTUs (sub-operational taxonomic units, 100% unique) and 167 fungal sOTUs across all of our samples (25–84 sOTUs per sample). The most abundant bacterial sOTU belonged to the genus Bacillus. This sOTU was present in blanks and may represent contamination during sample handling or storage. The sample collected from inside the fairing just prior to launch contained several unique bacterial and fungal sOTUs that describe previously uncharacterized potential for contamination during the final phase of ATLO. Additionally, fungal richness (number of sOTUs) negatively correlates with the number of carbon-bearing particles detected on samples. The total number of fungal sequences positively correlates with total amino acid concentration. These results demonstrate that it is possible to use samples of opportunity to characterize the microbiology of low-biomass environments while also revealing the limitations imposed by sample collection and preservation methods not specifically designed with biology in mind.

Aaron B. Regberg↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Lessons Learned From Designing and Building Low Organic Outgassing Cleanrooms for NASA OSIRIS-REx and Hayabusa2 Curation Facility

NASA Johnson Space Center Astromaterials Acquisition and Curation Office completed construction and commissioning of the OSIRIS-REx and Hayabusa2 cleanroom laboratory suites along with new precision cleaning and advanced curation laboratories consisting of ISO Class 5, 6, and 7 cleanrooms. The new curation facilities are designed for initial receiving, basic characterization, curation processing, and preliminary examination of carbonaceous asteroidal material. The facilities are also designed to enable long-term pristine sample storage to preserve the scientific integrity of each sample to enable future research by the international science community. The scientific study of organics is critical for both missions. The OSIRIS-REx mission instituted a stringent contamination control plan for low organics. Given these mission requirements and long-term storage preservation requirements, cleanroom construction materials were carefully selected to not hinder the scientific search for amino acids and the study of organics in the samples. Cleanroom candidate construction materials were researched for the HVAC system, floors, walls, ceiling, and plenum areas. The team chose several candidate materials that were further tested for their specific outgassing characteristics using ASTM E-595 per ASTM E-2312. The information gained provided the foundation for the final design selection of the cleanroom materials. While material selection is important before and during the facility design phase, the construction phase is where these choices are implemented by the prime construction contractor through final product and material submittals. These submittals are the last check point and changes are often submitted due to engineering/construction conflicts, especially when renovating an existing building. Any new material or equipment/product change must be identified and scrutinized for low particulate shedding and outgassing properties. In some cases, quick testing of new material is required, and compromises must be made in real-time. Careful selection and implementation of cleanroom materials significantly reduced organic and inorganic contamination beyond normal cleanroom baselines.

astromaterials curation↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Lessons Learned From Designing and Building Low Organic Outgassing Cleanrooms for NASA OSIRIS-REx and Hayabusa2 Curation Facility

NASA Johnson Space Center Astromaterials Acquisition and Curation Office completed construction and commissioning of the OSIRIS-REx and Hayabusa2 cleanroom laboratory suites along with new precision cleaning and advanced curation laboratories consisting of ISO Class 5, 6, and 7 cleanrooms. The new curation facilities are designed for initial receiving, basic characterization, curation processing, and preliminary examination of carbonaceous asteroidal material. The facilities are also designed to enable long-term pristine sample storage to preserve the scientific integrity of each sample to enable future research by the international science community. The scientific study of organics is critical for both missions. The OSIRIS-REx mission instituted a stringent contamination control plan for low organics. Given these mission requirements and long-term storage preservation requirements, cleanroom construction materials were carefully selected to not hinder the scientific search for amino acids and the study of organics in the samples. Cleanroom candidate construction materials were researched for the HVAC system, floors, walls, ceiling, and plenum areas. The team chose several candidate materials that were further tested for their specific outgassing characteristics using ASTM E-595 per ASTM E-2312. The information gained provided the foundation for the final design selection of the cleanroom materials. While material selection is important before and during the facility design phase, the construction phase is where these choices are implemented by the prime construction contractor through final product and material submittals. These submittals are the last check point and changes are often submitted due to engineering/construction conflicts, especially when renovating an existing building. Any new material or equipment/product change must be identified and scrutinized for low particulate shedding and outgassing properties. In some cases, quick testing of new material is required, and compromises must be made in real-time. Careful selection and implementation of cleanroom materials significantly reduced organic and inorganic contamination beyond normal cleanroom baselines.

astromaterials curation↗
NASA NTRS2023

Curation planning and facilities for asteroid Bennu samples returned by the OSIRIS-REx mission

NASA's OSIRIS-REx spacecraft collected samples from carbonaceous near-Earth asteroid (101955) Bennu on October 20, 2020, and will deliver them to the Earth on September 24, 2023. The samples will be processed at the NASA Johnson Space Center (JSC), where most of the sample collection will be subsequently curated in a new cleanroom suite. The spacecraft collected loose regolith two ways: in a bulk sample chamber capable of holding up to 2 kg, and on industrial Velcro “contact pads” intended to collect small particles at the surface. Included in the JSC collection will be the bulk sample, the contact pads, contamination-monitoring witness plates, and supporting hardware. Planning for the curation of the samples and hardware started at the earliest phase of proposal development and continued in parallel with project development and execution. Because a major mission goal is characterization of organic compounds in the Bennu samples, extra effort was spent in the design stage to ensure a clean curation environment. Here, we describe the preparations to receive the sample, including the design, construction, outfitting, and monitoring of the cleanrooms at JSC; the planned recovery of the sample-containing capsule when it lands on Earth; and the approach to characterizing and cataloging the samples. These curation efforts will result in the distribution of pristine Bennu samples from JSC to the OSIRIS-REx science team, international partners, and the global scientific community for years to come.

curation↗
NASA NTRS2024

Bulk Oxygen Isotope Composition of Aggregate Samples From Asteroid Bennu Returned By OSIRIS-REx

On 24 September 2023, the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft delivered to Earth material collected from the surface of the B-type asteroid Bennu. During its ~2.5-year encounter with the asteroid, OSIRIS-REx made many important discoveries, including establishing its extremely primitive chemical composition, the presence of at least two lithologies, and evidence of fluid flow on its parent asteroid. One of the driving hypotheses of the Sample Analysis Plan is that Bennu’s dominant lithologies are comparable to the most aqueously altered carbonaceous chondrites. Oxygen three-isotope analysis is a powerful tool for defining the relationship between different meteorite groups and can be used to understand the nature of the returned Bennu samples. The O isotope signatures reflect the materials that parent asteroids accreted from and the geological processes that operated during asteroidal evolution. Aggregate samples of particles (typically <500 μm) likely sampled many different larger stones and boulders, and their composition may therefore represent the average composition of Bennu. Fractionation of the sample, e.g. comparison of aliquots of finer material with coarser particles within the aggregate samples, offers the opportunity to identify different isotopic reservoirs within the returned material. The average O isotope composition will also provide a baseline from which to identify and characterize any exogenous clasts present in the sample.

I. A. Franchi↗
NASA NTRS2024

Xenon Isotopic Analysis of Individual Intermediate Particles From the OSIRIS-REx Sample of Asteroid Bennu

The OSIRIS-REx mission sampled material from the B-type asteroid Bennu and delivered the sample to Earth on 24 September 2023. Here we present initial xenon isotopic analysis of individual intermediate particles of Bennu material collected by the OSIRIS-REx mission. Noble gases are key tracers of Solar System evolution. Xenon is particularly useful among the noble gases because its nine isotopes allow multiple contributing sources to be unambiguously identified. The sun, asteroids (as measured in meteorites), and comets (measured in the coma of comet 67P) have distinct xenon isotopic signatures reflecting different mixtures of nucleosynthetic components. In addition, 129 I, 238 U, and 244 Pu decay with different half-lives, producing characteristic xenon signatures. Exposure of samples containing light rare earth elements and barium to cosmic rays produces xenon from spallation and secondary neutron capture reaction. Noble gas analyses help address several of the driving hypotheses of the mission [9]. Particle-by-particle analysis can elucidate the diversity of material present and reveal distinct noble gas compositions, including the potential to detect presolar or cometary noble gas signatures on a small scale. The isotopic signature provides a fingerprint that can be used to constrain the sources of volatiles in planetary reservoirs and combined with other information (e.g. mineralogy and petrology of the material analyses) contributes to our understanding of the initial constituents, formation, and history of Bennu and its parent asteroid.

S A Crowther↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

Mineralogy of Bennu From Spectral Analysis of the Sample Returned By OSIRIS-REx

Here we report on preliminary tests of hypotheses related to the mineralogy of Bennu that were generated from spectral data collected during the asteroid operations phase of the Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification, and SecurityRegolith Explorer (OSIRIS-REx) mission. We focus on whether laboratory spectra confirm the hypotheses that (a) Bennu inorganic materials are dominated by Mg-rich phyllosilicates (with less than 10 vol% anhydrous silicates), contain magnetite, and exhibit signatures of up to three distinct carbonate phases, and (b) the dominant lithologies are comparable in bulk mineralogy to the most aqueously altered carbonaceous chondrites (CCs; petrologic types ≤2.4 in the classification, or types 1 and 2 in the classification). Signatures of organics also were detected but are not discussed here. Analysis of material returned from asteroid Bennu contributes to the broader goals of the OSIRIS-REx mission by allowing us to compare sample data at microscopic scales to meteorites, meter-scale asteroid observations, and disk-integrated ground-based observations. These results allow us to better recognize, and resolve, key gaps in our understanding of primitive solar system bodies.

V. E. Hamilton↗
NASA NTRSDate not supplied

OSIRIS-REx Earth Return & Entry: Targeting Strategy and Maneuver Performance

The OSIRIS-REx sample return capsule landed safely in the Utah desert on September 24, 2023. Starting with the departure from asteroid Bennu in May 2021 through the release of the sample capsule and its arrival at the edge of Earth’s atmosphere hours later, this phase of the mission was planned and analyzed thoroughly to optimize the probability of a successful sample return in a large number of nominal and off-nominal scenarios, all while emphasizing spacecraft safety. This paper discusses the spacecraft and sample capsule Earth return and atmospheric entry trajectory design, maneuver analysis, and flight performance, which ultimately helped lead to a successful sample return and initiation of the OSIRIS-APEX extended mission.

Daniel R. Wibben↗