Imaging-Based 3D Reconstruction of Sample Mass Lost from the OSIRIS-REx
Spacecraft
Abstract
On October 20, 2020, NASA’s OSIRIS-REx spacecraft performed its
Touch-and-Go (TAG) activity, in which it briefly contacted the surface
of the asteroid Bennu and successfully collected a sample of regolith.
Subsequent images of the sampling mechanism showed that thousands of
small regolith particles were escaping from it, apparently in
conjunction with movements of the mechanical arm and wrist joint by
which the sampling mechanism is attached to the spacecraft. The escaping
particles could be tracked from one image to another, and across
multiple images, which allowed the OSIRIS-REx optical navigation team to
detect, associate, and track particles using a combination of manual and
automated techniques. The associated tracks each represent a unique
particle that was further analyzed to estimate its ejection time, 3D
trajectory, and velocity, as well as its photometric properties, which
were used to compute its brightness, size, and mass. Compiling the
aggregate photometric and physical data for all of the particles leads
to an estimate of total sample mass lost during the post-TAG imaging
sequences. These results further inform an understanding of the sample
escape mechanisms and sample loss that occurred before the sample head
was stowed in the return capsule on October 28, 2020. The material
presented here is based upon work supported by NASA under Contract
NNM10AA11C issued through the New Frontiers Program.