Water is one of the essential elements for life. On our planet and perhaps elsewhere in the universe. And the researchers in charge of analyzing the Bennu samples brought back to Earth a few months ago are now arguing that the asteroid could, in fact, come from an ancient world covered in oceans.
You will also be interested in this
(on video) Osiris-Rex bids farewell to Bennu The Osiris-Rex (NASA) mission was to collect rock samples from the Earth’s surface.
Last September, teams on NASA’s Osiris-Rex mission retrieved samples from asteroid Bennu. Much more than was initially planned. With the dual objective of understanding how our solar system formed and how life appeared on Earth.
Bennu’s sample is unique!
A few days after the recovery, NASA announced that initial analysis of the samples revealed large amounts of water. MineralsMinerals Kind of soilsoil. The samples also appeared rich in carbon, nitrogen, and sulfur PhosphorusPhosphorus. Suffice it to imagine that asteroids like Bennu could play a crucial role in transporting the ingredients necessary for life on our planet.
Since then, laboratories around the world have begun studying these samples in depth to learn a little more. The University of Arizona (United States) was the first to receive its share. Only 200 mg. But the researchers will present their results in the meantime 55E Lunar and Planetary Science Conference Which will be held in Texas next month. And already, they are delivering some of their discoveries.
Thus they teach us that the samples they analyzed are different from their collections MeteoriteMeteorite. They really represent that the crustthe crust Phosphate rich CalciumCalcium and in magnesiummagnesium Never seen on any piece of asteroid that ended up on Earth. And AstronomersAstronomers Give an explanation. Bennu could be a fragment of an ancient world covered in oceans!
Patterns that point to a world covered in oceans
This idea comes from what they know aboutEnceladusEnceladusthere the moonthe moon No SatSat. Beneath its icy crust, it hides a vast ocean. And it’s rich PhosphatesPhosphates. Much more than our Earth’s oceans. So even if the hypothesis is still only a hypothesis, the researchers believe it is the best one to explain the phosphate found in the Bennu samples.
