Upon its successful launch out of Cape Canaveral, the spacecraft journeyed to Bennu, an asteroid not far from Earth that is believed to have formed between 1 and 2 billion years ago. As the asteroid is a remnant from the formation of our solar system, scientists believe it may reveal insights into our own history here on Earth.

The Challenge

X-ray mapping the mission

To thoroughly and sophisticatedly study Bennu, OSIRIS-REx needed to be capable of several tasks, one of which was to measure the elemental composition of the asteroid’s surface. Enter the Regolith X-ray Imaging Spectrometer – also known as REXIS. Developed by students and faculty at Harvard University and MIT, REXIS is able to identify how abundant different elements are throughout the asteroid. This is accomplished through various instruments, including Amptek’s X-ray technology.

Amptek has developed technology that is widely used for field-portable materials analysis through X-ray spectroscopy. Similarly, onboard OSIRIS-REx, the REXIS X-ray identified minerals on Bennu through X-ray spectroscopy. Amptek provided the Solar X-ray Monitor to measure the spectrum of the X-rays reaching Bennu. This enabled REXIS to create a map of the elements on Bennu’s surface, enabling OSIRIS-REx to embark on the next part of its mission – scouring the surface of the asteroid for materials that could help scientists understand how life began.

The Solution

New discoveries, new destinations

OSIRIS-REx spent nearly two years orbiting Bennu studying its surface. Once it had a clear understanding of Bennu’s terrain, the spacecraft landed on the surface to collect samples of rocks and dust for further analysis. OSIRIS-REx returned to Earth on Sept. 24, 2023 – just over seven years after its initial departure – and deposited a capsule containing the collected Bennu asteroid samples, landing in Utah for retrieval.

NASA scientists are currently studying not only these samples, but also the surface data collected by the REXIS instrument, in part due to Amptek’s innovations. The OSIRIS-REx “mothership” is now heading to its next destination, the asteroid Apophis, where REXIS will again help NASA’s scientists identify the chemical composition and minerals.

Learn more about Amptek's innovations.