📷 Image Credits: India Today
Nasa’s asteroid-exploring spacecraft OSIRIS-APEX has passed its first major test on the journey to asteroid Apophis, emerging unscathed after an exceptionally close encounter with the Sun on January 2, 2024. The spacecraft, formerly known as OSIRIS-REx before being reassigned to visit Apophis after delivering samples from asteroid Bennu, traveled 25 million miles closer to the Sun than it was originally designed to withstand. Mission engineers had reconfigured OSIRIS-APEX, positioning one of its solar arrays to shade sensitive components from the intense solar heat. Ron Mink, mission systems engineer at Nasa’s Goddard Space Flight Center, expressed his encouragement by the success of this first close perihelion pass.
Between December 2023 and mid-March 2024, the spacecraft was inactive with limited telemetry data available as it passed through the extreme solar vicinity. The team confirmed OSIRIS-APEX had weathered the experience successfully after testing its instruments. Some components even showed improved performance, with a camera mapping Apophis having fewer hot pixels caused by radiation exposure. A spectrometer dislodged a rock sample stuck inside from the Bennu collection, enhancing its functionality.
The spacecraft is now on an elliptical solar orbit and will have five more close encounters with the Sun before reaching Apophis in 2029. Despite the positive first perihelion, engineers remain cautious about the cumulative effects of extreme solar encounters and plan Earth gravity assist maneuvers to adjust trajectory. OSIRIS-APEX continues its journey towards an unprecedented study of the ‘God of Chaos’ asteroid, showcasing resilience and advancements in space exploration. The spacecraft’s successful navigation through intense solar conditions paves the way for further discoveries and insights into the mysteries of our solar system.
