Asteroid Bennu: Selecting Site Nightingale

OSIRIS-REx is a NASA mission to explore near-Earth asteroid Bennu and return a sample to Earth. Prior to arriving at Bennu, mission planners had expected the asteroid's surface to consist largely of fine-grained material, like a sandy beach. When OSIRIS-REx arrived in December 2018, however, it was greeted by a rocky world covered with boulders. This unexpected roughness means that there are few places on Bennu where OSIRIS-REx can safely touch down and collect a sample. After a year of studying the asteroid, the mission announced a primary sample collection site, which they designated "Nightingale," along with a backup site called "Osprey." In August 2020, OSIRIS-REx will descend to Nightingale and attempt to collect up to four-and-a-half pounds of loose material, for return to Earth in 2023. Universal Production Music: "Extreme Measures" by John Sands and Marc Ferrari, "Ice Echoes" by Dominik Luke Marsden Johnson, "Look at the Mirror" by Jonathan Figoli Credit: NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center Data provided by NASA/University of Arizona/CSA/York University/MDA. Dan Gallagher (USRA): Producer Writer Kel Elkins (USRA): Data Visualizer Swarupa Nune (InuTeq): Narrator Walt Feimer (KBRwyle): Lead Animator Michael Lentz (USRA): Animator Josh Masters (Freelance): Animator Lisa Poje (Freelance): Animator Erin Morton (University of Arizona): Support Aaron E. Lepsch (ADNET): Technical Support