A NASA asteroid probe is due to begin its return to Earth today. The space agency says it will take around 2 and a half years for the OSIRIS-REX to make it back home. It’s carrying a precious 1 kilogram cargo of matter vacuumed from the asteroid Bennu’s surface. Scientists hope the cosmic rubble with providing more clues about how life began here on Earth.
The asteroid named Bennu gives researchers a window into the past. It is about 500 meters wide and is composed of the same material that shaped our planet Earth. And that’s what makes Bennu such a great find. Every six years its orbital path brings it close to Earth.