OSIRIS-APEX

En Route

Extended mission of OSIRIS-REx after successfully returning samples from asteroid Bennu. Now heading to asteroid Apophis to study changes during its close Earth approach in 2029. Successfully survived multiple close solar passes in 2025, coming 25 million miles closer to the Sun than designed.

Type

Asteroid Rendezvous Mission

Launch Date

09/08/2016

Location

En Route to Asteroid Apophis (Expected Arrival: April 2029)

Live Journey Position

Mission Achievements

✓Successfully collected samples from asteroid Bennu (2020)
✓First U.S. asteroid sample return mission (September 2023)
✓Survived multiple close solar approaches in 2025
✓Completed close pass 25M miles closer to Sun than designed
✓Extended mission approved to study Apophis
✓Will observe Apophis during rare 2029 close Earth approach
✓Pioneered Touch-And-Go sample collection technique

Mission Objectives

▸Study asteroid Apophis before, during, and after 2029 Earth flyby
▸Investigate how close planetary encounters affect asteroids
▸Map surface composition and structure changes
▸Study Apophis rotation and shape evolution
▸Understand tidal effects from Earth's gravity

Scientific Instruments

•OCAMS: OSIRIS-REx Camera Suite - navigation and science imaging
•OLA: OSIRIS-REx Laser Altimeter - surface topography mapping
•OVIRS: OSIRIS-REx Visible and Infrared Spectrometer
•OTES: OSIRIS-REx Thermal Emission Spectrometer
•REXIS: Regolith X-ray Imaging Spectrometer