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Imaging-Based 3D Reconstruction of Sample Mass Lost from the OSIRIS-REx Spacecraft
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  • Coralie Adam,
  • Derek Nelson,
  • John Pelgrift,
  • Erik Lessac-Chenen,
  • Carl Hergenrother,
  • Eric Sahr,
  • Leilah McCarthy,
  • Christian d'Aubigny,
  • Dante Lauretta
Coralie Adam
KinetX, Inc

Corresponding Author:[email protected]

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Derek Nelson
KinetX, Inc.
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John Pelgrift
KinetX, Inc.
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Erik Lessac-Chenen
KinetX, Inc.
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Carl Hergenrother
University of Arizona
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Eric Sahr
KinetX, Inc.
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Leilah McCarthy
KinetX, Inc.
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Christian d'Aubigny
University of Arizona
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Dante Lauretta
University of Arizona
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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.