Bennu Asteroid Holds Stardust Older Than the Solar System

Quick Summary

• Scientists have analyzed samples from asteroid Bennu, collected by NASA’s OSIRIS-REx spacecraft in 2020.
• The samples reveal Bennu contains stardust older than the solar system, alongside materials formed within it and organic matter from interstellar space.
• Bennu is described as a “time capsule” of materials reflecting the early stages of the solar system’s formation.
• Studies published in Nature Astronomy and Nature Geoscience show that 80% of Bennu’s current composition resulted from interactions involving water on its now-destroyed parent asteroid.
• Presolar grains are identified using unique chemical signatures pointing to stars that no longer exist; these grains survived extreme reactions over billions of years.
• Bennu’s surface has been shaped rapidly by space weathering processes such as micrometeorite impacts and exposure to cosmic rays for millions of years. comparisons with asteroid Ryugu suggest impacts dramatically reshape asteroid surfaces faster than thought before.
• Collecting direct samples from space allows better historical reconstruction compared to meteorites reaching Earth, highlighting the importance of missions like OSIRIS-REx.

indian Opinion Analysis

The discovery underscores how asteroid research contributes directly to understanding cosmic history, including processes critical to Earth’s origins. Asteroids like Bennu preserve material predating our solar system, offering insights into ancient stellar phenomena and interstellar processes essential for constructing models about planetary formation.

For India’s growing focus on space science-evident in missions like Chandrayaan or upcoming projects exploring outer planets-studies like this underline international collaboration around shared goals: expanding human knowledge beyond immediate outcomes such as navigation satellites or defense applications. Partnerships around sample collection missions could yield transformative advances for developing nations’ scientific frameworks.

India may benefit by supporting research institutes analyzing extraterrestrial material scientifically,aligning with its ambitions in deep-space exploration while owning pivotal roles internationally across similar projects moving forward.

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