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OSIRIS-REx Mission records, 2012-2021

MS 698

Historical Note

OSIRIS-REx (Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification, Security, Regolith Explorer) is the National Aeronautical and Space Administration's first asteroid sample return mission. OSIRIS-REx seeks answers to the questions that are central to the human experience: Where did we come from? What is our destiny? Asteroids, the leftover debris from the solar system formation process, can answer these questions and teach us about the history of the sun and planets. The OSIRIS-REx spacecraft is traveling to Bennu, a carbonaceous asteroid whose regolith may record the earliest history of our solar system. Bennu may contain the molecular precursors to the origin of life and the Earth's oceans. Bennu is also one of the most potentially hazardous asteroids, as it has a relatively high probability of impacting the Earth late in the 22nd century. OSIRIS-REx will determine Bennu's physical and chemical properties, which will be critical to know in the event of an impact mitigation mission. Finally, asteroids like Bennu contain natural resources such as water, organics, and precious metals. In the future, these asteroids may one day fuel the exploration of the solar system by robotic and manned spacecraft.

NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, Maryland, provides overall mission management, systems engineering and safety and mission assurance for OSIRIS-REx. Dante Lauretta is the mission's principal investigator at the University of Arizona. Lockheed Martin Space Systems in Denver is building the spacecraft. OSIRIS-REx is the third mission in NASA's New Frontiers Program. NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Alabama, manages New Frontiers for the agency's Science Mission Directorate in Washington. Dante Lauretta of the University of Arizona, Tucson, is the principal investigator for OSIRIS-REx, and the University of Arizona also leads the science team and the mission's science observation planning and data processing. OSIRIS-REx is the National Aeronautical and Space Administrations' first asteroid sample return mission operated by the University of Arizona Lunar and Planetary Laboratory.

Biographical Note

Dante Lauretta is the principal investigator of the OSIRIS-Rex mission. He is a Professor of planetary science and cosmochemistry at the University of Arizona in the Lunar and Planetary Laboratory. He graduated with a B.S. in Physics and Mathematics and a B.A. in Oriental Studies with a focus in Japanese from the University of Arizona in 1993 and a Ph.D. in Earth and Planetary Sciences from Washington University in St. Louis in 1997. He began working at the University of Arizona in 2001. He is an expert in near-Earth asteroid formation and evolution and his main research focus is the formation and alteration of minerals in the solar nebula and on meteorite parent asteroids. He is also working on the application of inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry to geologic studies.

Scope and Content Note

The OSIRIS-REx Mission records contain supplemental documents, project management reports, images and other items to better contextualize and support mission publications and data that is being deposited to the planetary data system. It is a born-digital collection with online access threw the University of Arizona Libraries Campus Repository. Series 1 contains mission information stored in a MediaWiki includes Science Objective Summaries, Instrument Operations Overviews, Downlink Schedules, Science Weekly Debriefs and Daily Downlink Tagup presentations. Organized chronologically by mission phase and then by week and day of year. Series II contains information regarding the Science Implementation Plan. The Science Implementation Plan details the objectives of the OSIRIS-REx asteroid return mission and contains documents concerning the instrument capabilities, objectives. implementation requirements and data product descriptions. Also included is a list of glossary terms, acronyms and publications related to the mission along with a list of science team organization members. This wiki is organized by list of mission objectives. Series III contains documents and tables from the Science Team Wiki. The Science Team wiki was used to host documents, tables, photos and videos created by the Science Team over the course of the mission. This includes conference presentations, science data tables, images and models. This series is organized alphabetically. Series IV contains Asteroid Features Nomenclature Proposals used for naming features on the asteroid Bennu. Series V contains physical memorabilia and ephemera related to the OSIRIS-REx Asteroid Return Mission. This includes enamel pins, buttons, stickers, and patches given out to team members as well as the general public in celebration of specific events during the mission. It also includes 3D models of the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft and the asteroid Bennu. Branded shirts, mugs, cups, stress balls, masks are also included. Series VI contains links to archived copies of social media accounts and websites linked to the OSIRIS-REx mission. This includes the Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook pages. As well as the main mission website and the blog of primary investigation Dante Lauretta. Series VII contains additional project planning documents and materials.

Organization

Restrictions

Restrictions

There are no restrictions on this collection.

Copyright

It is the responsibility of the user to obtain permission to publish from theowner of the copyright (the institution, the creator of the record, the author or his/her transferees, heirs, legates, or literary executors). The user agrees to indemnify and hold harmless the Arizona Board of Regents for the University of Arizona, its officers, employees, and agents from and against all claims made by any person asserting that he or she is an owner of copyright.

Access Terms

Administrative Information

Credit Line

OSIRIS-Rex Mission records (MS 698). Special Collections, University of Arizona Libraries

Processing History

Processed by Elizabeth Wheeler in 2019.

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