1 00:00:04,240 --> 00:00:07,240 Speaker 1: Welcome to tech Stuff, a production of I Heart Radios, 2 00:00:07,320 --> 00:00:13,800 Speaker 1: How Stuff Works. Hey there, and welcome to tech Stuff. 3 00:00:13,840 --> 00:00:16,960 Speaker 1: I'm your host Jonathan Strickland. I'm an executive producer with 4 00:00:17,000 --> 00:00:19,079 Speaker 1: how Stuff Rex and I Heart Radio and I love 5 00:00:19,160 --> 00:00:23,600 Speaker 1: all things tech. And On June twelve, two thousand nineteen, 6 00:00:24,040 --> 00:00:29,720 Speaker 1: a small spacecraft called Osiris Rex set a new out 7 00:00:29,760 --> 00:00:33,479 Speaker 1: of this world record. That record was for entering the 8 00:00:33,560 --> 00:00:39,120 Speaker 1: closest orbit around a small planetary body, and the record 9 00:00:39,200 --> 00:00:44,600 Speaker 1: was previously held by well Osirius Rex, but now it 10 00:00:44,760 --> 00:00:49,640 Speaker 1: was really extra super close, like six d eight meters 11 00:00:49,760 --> 00:00:55,120 Speaker 1: or less than unred feet close. The planetary body is 12 00:00:55,160 --> 00:00:59,840 Speaker 1: the asteroid Bnu b e nn you. It will eventually 13 00:01:00,320 --> 00:01:03,040 Speaker 1: get even closer to Benu. The plan is for the 14 00:01:03,080 --> 00:01:06,960 Speaker 1: spacecraft to make contact with the asteroid for the purposes 15 00:01:07,000 --> 00:01:10,280 Speaker 1: of collecting a sample, then it will begin its journey 16 00:01:10,280 --> 00:01:13,480 Speaker 1: back to Earth. Right now, it's taking a series of 17 00:01:13,520 --> 00:01:16,479 Speaker 1: images of the asteroid, partly so that a team back 18 00:01:16,480 --> 00:01:19,759 Speaker 1: here on Earth can evaluate the best spot to make 19 00:01:19,840 --> 00:01:23,160 Speaker 1: that point of contact. It turns out Benu is a 20 00:01:23,160 --> 00:01:27,440 Speaker 1: bit more bumpy than we anticipated, so finding a spot 21 00:01:27,440 --> 00:01:30,080 Speaker 1: that will be suitable for a Cyrus Rex and given 22 00:01:30,120 --> 00:01:33,000 Speaker 1: the best chance for a successful mission is no small 23 00:01:33,040 --> 00:01:37,440 Speaker 1: task in of itself. That's the short version of the story. 24 00:01:37,680 --> 00:01:40,120 Speaker 1: But today I want to talk more about the mission, 25 00:01:40,480 --> 00:01:44,360 Speaker 1: the technology, and the long term plan to mine asteroids 26 00:01:44,400 --> 00:01:47,840 Speaker 1: as part of the overall strategy for deep space operations. 27 00:01:48,400 --> 00:01:52,000 Speaker 1: And this isn't the first time I've talked about asteroid mining. 28 00:01:52,200 --> 00:01:55,240 Speaker 1: Way back in June two thousand twelve, my co host 29 00:01:55,320 --> 00:01:58,840 Speaker 1: Chris Palette and I talked about this idea, and we 30 00:01:58,960 --> 00:02:03,920 Speaker 1: also replayed that episode in May two thousand nineteen. So 31 00:02:04,240 --> 00:02:07,160 Speaker 1: some of this might sound a bit familiar since I'll 32 00:02:07,160 --> 00:02:10,919 Speaker 1: be tackling a similar subject, but it's well overdue for 33 00:02:10,960 --> 00:02:14,200 Speaker 1: a follow up, So let's begin with a high level 34 00:02:14,280 --> 00:02:17,520 Speaker 1: view of what asteroid mining is all about. There are 35 00:02:17,520 --> 00:02:21,160 Speaker 1: many different types of asteroids out there. They formed over 36 00:02:21,320 --> 00:02:25,480 Speaker 1: billions of years from the same proto planetary dust that 37 00:02:25,680 --> 00:02:29,320 Speaker 1: orbited the Sun and eventually formed the planets and moons 38 00:02:29,360 --> 00:02:32,919 Speaker 1: of our Solar System. Some of those asteroids were formed 39 00:02:33,040 --> 00:02:35,760 Speaker 1: just by particles of dust crashing into one another and 40 00:02:35,800 --> 00:02:40,000 Speaker 1: forming larger particles eventually growing into small rocks, and then 41 00:02:40,680 --> 00:02:46,000 Speaker 1: you know, less small rocks into big honking rocks. Some 42 00:02:46,160 --> 00:02:49,880 Speaker 1: formed after other planetary bodies had collisions and ejected matter 43 00:02:50,040 --> 00:02:54,040 Speaker 1: out into space as a result. But in general, you've 44 00:02:54,080 --> 00:02:57,520 Speaker 1: got a bunch of rocky stuff floating around the Solar System. 45 00:02:57,560 --> 00:02:59,520 Speaker 1: And I said there are many different types of asteroids, 46 00:03:00,040 --> 00:03:03,800 Speaker 1: and that is true, but it's also a bit complicated, 47 00:03:04,280 --> 00:03:06,400 Speaker 1: and that's because there's actually more than one way to 48 00:03:06,480 --> 00:03:11,560 Speaker 1: classify asteroids. You could classify them by their location. For example, 49 00:03:12,120 --> 00:03:15,120 Speaker 1: most of the asteroids we know about are in orbit 50 00:03:15,160 --> 00:03:18,799 Speaker 1: in what we call the asteroid belt appropriately enough, and 51 00:03:18,919 --> 00:03:22,280 Speaker 1: that's between the orbits of Mars and Jubiter. Now there 52 00:03:22,320 --> 00:03:26,600 Speaker 1: are other asteroids called near Earth asteroids, which, as the 53 00:03:26,680 --> 00:03:30,200 Speaker 1: name suggests, have orbits that take them close to the Earth. 54 00:03:30,760 --> 00:03:34,600 Speaker 1: These can sometimes pose what is called a problem, And 55 00:03:34,639 --> 00:03:37,360 Speaker 1: by a problem, I mean that a sufficiently large enough 56 00:03:37,360 --> 00:03:41,440 Speaker 1: asteroid could cause global devastation should collide with Earth, you know, 57 00:03:41,720 --> 00:03:46,000 Speaker 1: fun times. But we can also classify asteroids based on 58 00:03:46,080 --> 00:03:49,440 Speaker 1: what they are made out of. There are three major 59 00:03:49,520 --> 00:03:53,160 Speaker 1: classes of asteroids. The most common type that we know 60 00:03:53,200 --> 00:03:57,600 Speaker 1: about is C type or chondrite asteroids. These are made 61 00:03:57,680 --> 00:04:01,400 Speaker 1: up of silicate rocks and clay and have some carbonaceous 62 00:04:01,400 --> 00:04:04,280 Speaker 1: material in them. They are in the outer regions of 63 00:04:04,320 --> 00:04:08,240 Speaker 1: the asteroid belt. They are dark and thus hard to spot, 64 00:04:08,440 --> 00:04:13,080 Speaker 1: but they make up about of all known asteroids. Then 65 00:04:13,120 --> 00:04:18,919 Speaker 1: you've got S type or silicaceous asteroids or stony asteroids. 66 00:04:18,960 --> 00:04:23,320 Speaker 1: They consist of nickel, iron, and silicate materials primarily, and 67 00:04:23,360 --> 00:04:26,200 Speaker 1: they tend to be brighter than C type asteroids, and 68 00:04:26,240 --> 00:04:29,760 Speaker 1: most of those inhabit the inner asteroid belt. Then you've 69 00:04:29,760 --> 00:04:34,320 Speaker 1: got M type or metallic asteroids that are made primarily 70 00:04:34,360 --> 00:04:36,839 Speaker 1: from nickel and iron. They make up about eight percent 71 00:04:37,000 --> 00:04:39,920 Speaker 1: of all known asteroids, and they're mostly in the middle 72 00:04:40,040 --> 00:04:43,520 Speaker 1: region of the asteroid belt, and they also are brighter 73 00:04:43,560 --> 00:04:46,599 Speaker 1: than C type asteroids. Now those are the major types, 74 00:04:46,640 --> 00:04:51,080 Speaker 1: but they're also A type asteroids, B type, D type asteroids, 75 00:04:51,080 --> 00:04:55,680 Speaker 1: and so on. These represent rare or extremely rare types 76 00:04:55,720 --> 00:04:58,920 Speaker 1: of asteroids, and some are considered subtypes of the more 77 00:04:58,960 --> 00:05:03,279 Speaker 1: common variants. Some are kind of a split between different 78 00:05:03,320 --> 00:05:07,040 Speaker 1: major types. They're different enough to justify a subclassification. There's 79 00:05:07,040 --> 00:05:11,719 Speaker 1: somewhere in between the major versions. Benu, the asteroid that 80 00:05:11,800 --> 00:05:17,760 Speaker 1: osiris rex orbits, is one of these smaller subclassifications. It's 81 00:05:17,800 --> 00:05:22,200 Speaker 1: technically a B type asteroid. B type asteroids are a 82 00:05:22,200 --> 00:05:26,240 Speaker 1: subcategory of C type asteroids, which, as I just mentioned, 83 00:05:26,279 --> 00:05:29,120 Speaker 1: make up the vast majority of the known asteroids that 84 00:05:29,160 --> 00:05:32,159 Speaker 1: we've observed so far. That's one of the reasons the 85 00:05:32,200 --> 00:05:35,520 Speaker 1: Osiris REX team selected Benu, But I'll get back to that. 86 00:05:36,200 --> 00:05:41,480 Speaker 1: So asteroid mining, that's the name suggests, involves harvesting resources 87 00:05:41,520 --> 00:05:46,520 Speaker 1: from asteroids. Those resources could include volatile substances like trapped 88 00:05:46,560 --> 00:05:50,720 Speaker 1: gases within the molecular structure of the asteroid. Metals are 89 00:05:50,720 --> 00:05:54,520 Speaker 1: another possible resource, and asteroid mining could go after stuff 90 00:05:54,520 --> 00:05:58,400 Speaker 1: like platinum. Water is another big resource as it could 91 00:05:58,400 --> 00:06:01,799 Speaker 1: be used to produce rocket fuel, among other things. Most 92 00:06:01,880 --> 00:06:07,000 Speaker 1: deep space exploration strategies include some sort of asteroid mining component, 93 00:06:07,360 --> 00:06:09,440 Speaker 1: as it would mean making use of materials that are 94 00:06:09,480 --> 00:06:12,839 Speaker 1: already out in space to support the mission, which reduces 95 00:06:12,880 --> 00:06:15,160 Speaker 1: the need to carry more stuff with you when you're 96 00:06:15,240 --> 00:06:18,960 Speaker 1: launching from Earth. In fact, the concept of asteroid mining 97 00:06:19,320 --> 00:06:21,640 Speaker 1: is all about being able to leverage stuff out in 98 00:06:21,760 --> 00:06:26,400 Speaker 1: space while we're exploring or colonizing space. It's not about 99 00:06:26,480 --> 00:06:30,680 Speaker 1: bringing resources back to Earth, but rather limiting the resources 100 00:06:30,720 --> 00:06:34,279 Speaker 1: we need need to bring from Earth out into space. 101 00:06:35,240 --> 00:06:38,320 Speaker 1: And that's a big deal. The more massive the payload 102 00:06:38,680 --> 00:06:41,719 Speaker 1: of your spacecraft, the more fuel you need to get 103 00:06:41,760 --> 00:06:44,919 Speaker 1: off the ground, and that could necessitate the design of 104 00:06:44,960 --> 00:06:48,160 Speaker 1: new launch vehicles if the payload you're looking at is 105 00:06:48,200 --> 00:06:51,360 Speaker 1: heavy enough and the fuel itself is really expensive. So 106 00:06:51,560 --> 00:06:53,640 Speaker 1: if you can reduce the amount of fuel you need, 107 00:06:54,000 --> 00:06:56,920 Speaker 1: then you bring down the complexity and the cost of 108 00:06:56,960 --> 00:07:01,359 Speaker 1: a launch. And it's absolutely necessary to do something like 109 00:07:01,440 --> 00:07:04,200 Speaker 1: asteroid mining if we want to send people to places 110 00:07:04,240 --> 00:07:06,640 Speaker 1: like Mars and have them be able to get back again. 111 00:07:07,279 --> 00:07:09,200 Speaker 1: If those who travel to Mars can make use of 112 00:07:09,240 --> 00:07:12,480 Speaker 1: the resources that are actually on the Red planet using 113 00:07:13,040 --> 00:07:16,280 Speaker 1: techniques that we've perfected through asteroid mining, then they can 114 00:07:16,280 --> 00:07:19,160 Speaker 1: do that to produce their own rocket fuel. They can 115 00:07:19,240 --> 00:07:21,680 Speaker 1: manufacture their own fuel they need to return to Earth. 116 00:07:21,720 --> 00:07:23,560 Speaker 1: There would be no need to carry twice as much 117 00:07:23,560 --> 00:07:28,000 Speaker 1: fuel on board to make a round trip. Moreover, harvesting 118 00:07:28,040 --> 00:07:31,800 Speaker 1: resources from asteroids could yield us the materials we need 119 00:07:31,920 --> 00:07:34,920 Speaker 1: to build structures out in space in the first place. 120 00:07:35,160 --> 00:07:38,720 Speaker 1: So instead of launching spacecraft that are carrying components and 121 00:07:38,840 --> 00:07:42,320 Speaker 1: modules that then have to be assemboled in orbit or 122 00:07:42,360 --> 00:07:45,840 Speaker 1: in deep space, we could get the raw materials in 123 00:07:45,920 --> 00:07:50,720 Speaker 1: space itself and establish orbiting manufacturing facilities. Again, we wouldn't 124 00:07:50,720 --> 00:07:53,200 Speaker 1: have to take stuff from Earth incident on into space, 125 00:07:53,240 --> 00:07:56,120 Speaker 1: because we'd be harvesting all that raw materials from other 126 00:07:56,200 --> 00:07:59,720 Speaker 1: bodies in space. Of course, all of this is easy 127 00:07:59,760 --> 00:08:03,920 Speaker 1: to talk about in the hypothetical. Actually building the equipment 128 00:08:04,120 --> 00:08:07,760 Speaker 1: that can make this possible is another matter entirely, and 129 00:08:07,800 --> 00:08:11,800 Speaker 1: while we can be theoretical about it, being practical requires 130 00:08:11,920 --> 00:08:15,360 Speaker 1: a whole lot more work. Oh, cyrus Rex and other 131 00:08:15,400 --> 00:08:19,320 Speaker 1: projects are building the foundation upon which we can actually 132 00:08:19,360 --> 00:08:24,000 Speaker 1: construct this asteroid mining future. So let's talk more about 133 00:08:24,040 --> 00:08:27,360 Speaker 1: that mission and the spacecraft. One thing the team had 134 00:08:27,400 --> 00:08:30,480 Speaker 1: to do must figure out which asteroid to select for 135 00:08:30,520 --> 00:08:32,560 Speaker 1: a mission in the first place. I mean, there are 136 00:08:32,559 --> 00:08:36,240 Speaker 1: millions of them. So how did they settle on Benu 137 00:08:36,360 --> 00:08:40,400 Speaker 1: metaphorically speaking, since the spacecraft has not, as the recording 138 00:08:40,440 --> 00:08:44,800 Speaker 1: of this podcast, literally settled on the asteroid. There are 139 00:08:44,840 --> 00:08:48,960 Speaker 1: more than half a million identified asteroids in the Solar System. 140 00:08:49,040 --> 00:08:53,160 Speaker 1: So why did the team choose Benu? Well, first, they 141 00:08:53,200 --> 00:08:56,200 Speaker 1: decided the asteroid couldn't be too far away that would 142 00:08:56,240 --> 00:08:59,360 Speaker 1: make it impractical to journey there. So the further way 143 00:08:59,400 --> 00:09:01,520 Speaker 1: the asteroid, the harder it is to get there, and 144 00:09:01,559 --> 00:09:06,000 Speaker 1: the potential for failure increases as distance increases. For that reason, 145 00:09:06,040 --> 00:09:08,520 Speaker 1: the team wanted to focus on asteroids that fall into 146 00:09:08,520 --> 00:09:12,960 Speaker 1: the category of near Earth objects or an EOS. Near 147 00:09:13,200 --> 00:09:16,839 Speaker 1: is a relative term, mind you, they're not just a 148 00:09:16,920 --> 00:09:20,920 Speaker 1: quick jaunt away. To be classified as an n EO, 149 00:09:21,120 --> 00:09:24,400 Speaker 1: the object has to be within one point three astronomical 150 00:09:24,559 --> 00:09:28,880 Speaker 1: units from the Sun in their orbits. A single astronomical 151 00:09:28,960 --> 00:09:31,120 Speaker 1: unit is the distance between the Earth and the Sun. 152 00:09:31,640 --> 00:09:35,079 Speaker 1: That means it's about ninety three million miles or around 153 00:09:35,120 --> 00:09:39,160 Speaker 1: a hundred fifty million kilometers. That makes one point three 154 00:09:39,400 --> 00:09:44,040 Speaker 1: astronomical units at around a hundred twenty million, eight hundred 155 00:09:44,080 --> 00:09:50,079 Speaker 1: thousand miles or one four million, five hundred thousand kilometers. So, 156 00:09:50,480 --> 00:09:53,880 Speaker 1: as I said, near is relative, but that's because space 157 00:09:54,000 --> 00:09:58,920 Speaker 1: is really big. An EOS can sometimes pose a potential 158 00:09:59,000 --> 00:10:02,959 Speaker 1: hazard to Earth. These asteroids are in a subcategory called 159 00:10:03,080 --> 00:10:07,880 Speaker 1: potentially hazardous asteroids or p h a's, and ben Wu 160 00:10:08,040 --> 00:10:12,320 Speaker 1: happens to be one of those. There is a small 161 00:10:12,480 --> 00:10:15,760 Speaker 1: chance that the asteroid could collide with Earth late in 162 00:10:15,800 --> 00:10:19,679 Speaker 1: the twenty second century, and by small chance, I mean 163 00:10:19,720 --> 00:10:22,160 Speaker 1: we currently estimate the odds of it happening are less 164 00:10:22,160 --> 00:10:25,920 Speaker 1: than point zero four percent. But still, when you're looking 165 00:10:25,960 --> 00:10:31,720 Speaker 1: at the potential for devastation. Any chance isn't you know great? 166 00:10:32,480 --> 00:10:35,960 Speaker 1: But back to choosing Benu. So Benu was one of 167 00:10:36,000 --> 00:10:39,000 Speaker 1: just a d two asteroids that had an earth like 168 00:10:39,280 --> 00:10:43,240 Speaker 1: orbit with low eccentricity, so it's got a nice stable 169 00:10:43,320 --> 00:10:47,360 Speaker 1: orbit that's pretty similar to Earth's. Out of all the 170 00:10:48,080 --> 00:10:51,640 Speaker 1: thousands there are more than seven thousand year Earth objects 171 00:10:51,679 --> 00:10:56,359 Speaker 1: that they were looking at, only two met that criteria, 172 00:10:56,520 --> 00:11:00,160 Speaker 1: and ben Wu was one of those two. Next, the 173 00:11:00,200 --> 00:11:03,640 Speaker 1: team looked at the size of the remaining candidates, because 174 00:11:03,800 --> 00:11:08,760 Speaker 1: smaller asteroids rotate faster than larger ones, and fast rotating 175 00:11:08,760 --> 00:11:12,120 Speaker 1: asteroids can eject material out into space and that could 176 00:11:12,200 --> 00:11:15,960 Speaker 1: pose a problem for any spacecraft that is flying nearby 177 00:11:16,080 --> 00:11:18,800 Speaker 1: or trying to make contact with that asteroid. So the 178 00:11:18,840 --> 00:11:21,319 Speaker 1: team needed to rule out any asteroids that had a 179 00:11:21,360 --> 00:11:24,319 Speaker 1: diameter smaller than two hundreds because they would probably be 180 00:11:24,360 --> 00:11:28,600 Speaker 1: spinning too quickly. That eliminated all but twenty six of 181 00:11:28,640 --> 00:11:31,800 Speaker 1: the candidates ben who's diameter, by the way, is approximately 182 00:11:31,880 --> 00:11:35,480 Speaker 1: five and we have to use approximations in part because 183 00:11:35,520 --> 00:11:37,920 Speaker 1: Benu is a big, lumpy rock, so it all depends 184 00:11:38,000 --> 00:11:41,680 Speaker 1: upon where you're doing the measuring. Then there's the asteroids composition. 185 00:11:42,120 --> 00:11:44,760 Speaker 1: Out of the twenty six remaining in NEOs that were 186 00:11:44,840 --> 00:11:48,240 Speaker 1: under consideration, not much was known about fourteen of them, 187 00:11:48,320 --> 00:11:52,120 Speaker 1: so those were out. Out of the twelve remaining in eos, 188 00:11:52,160 --> 00:11:54,760 Speaker 1: only five are known to be rich in carbon and 189 00:11:54,800 --> 00:11:58,760 Speaker 1: other materials like volatiles, and therefore they have the potential 190 00:11:58,840 --> 00:12:02,040 Speaker 1: to have or anic materials sort of the building blocks 191 00:12:02,080 --> 00:12:06,840 Speaker 1: of life, not necessarily any proof of life forms on 192 00:12:06,880 --> 00:12:10,960 Speaker 1: the asteroid itself, but rather the basic components that together 193 00:12:11,200 --> 00:12:15,800 Speaker 1: could form a life. And so Benu and four other 194 00:12:16,240 --> 00:12:18,880 Speaker 1: asteroids were left on the list, and the team eventually 195 00:12:18,960 --> 00:12:22,080 Speaker 1: chose Benu from those few remaining and eos that were 196 00:12:22,120 --> 00:12:26,200 Speaker 1: under consideration. To complete a full orbit, it takes Bnu 197 00:12:26,280 --> 00:12:29,760 Speaker 1: about four hundred thirty six Earth days to go around 198 00:12:29,760 --> 00:12:33,839 Speaker 1: the Sun. Every half dozen years, Benu gets fairly close 199 00:12:33,880 --> 00:12:37,120 Speaker 1: to Earth, as the respective orbits of Benu and our 200 00:12:37,200 --> 00:12:40,920 Speaker 1: planet bring the two bodies within point zero zero two 201 00:12:41,040 --> 00:12:44,600 Speaker 1: astronomical units of each other. And as I said late 202 00:12:44,600 --> 00:12:47,760 Speaker 1: in the twenty second century, that's going to happen about 203 00:12:47,800 --> 00:12:53,120 Speaker 1: eight times, really fairly close to one another. But the 204 00:12:53,200 --> 00:12:56,680 Speaker 1: chance of a collision is is fairly really small, not 205 00:12:56,760 --> 00:12:59,839 Speaker 1: fairly small, less than point zero four percent. Still it's 206 00:12:59,840 --> 00:13:03,080 Speaker 1: a possibility. Now when we come back, I'll talk more 207 00:13:03,160 --> 00:13:05,920 Speaker 1: about the spacecraft itself before moving on to talk of 208 00:13:05,960 --> 00:13:09,359 Speaker 1: other technology and development. They'll bring us close to mining asteroids. 209 00:13:09,360 --> 00:13:19,680 Speaker 1: But first let's take a quick break. So let's talk 210 00:13:19,760 --> 00:13:23,400 Speaker 1: about o Cyrus Rex. First, let's talk about the name. Now, 211 00:13:23,440 --> 00:13:26,000 Speaker 1: I'm pretty confident that the name was one of those 212 00:13:26,000 --> 00:13:28,800 Speaker 1: where they came up with the name first and then 213 00:13:28,880 --> 00:13:33,920 Speaker 1: retroactively worked to turn that name into an acronym. Osirius 214 00:13:34,440 --> 00:13:37,400 Speaker 1: is the name of the ancient Egyptian god of the 215 00:13:37,480 --> 00:13:42,800 Speaker 1: afterlife and rebirth. Benu, the asteroid, happens to also have 216 00:13:42,840 --> 00:13:45,760 Speaker 1: an Egyptian name, is named after a mythical bird in 217 00:13:45,880 --> 00:13:49,400 Speaker 1: ancient Egyptian lore, which played a part in creating the 218 00:13:49,440 --> 00:13:53,120 Speaker 1: world itself. So my guess is that the team was 219 00:13:53,160 --> 00:13:57,240 Speaker 1: working on this spacecraft, they selected Benu as the asteroid 220 00:13:57,240 --> 00:14:00,000 Speaker 1: they were going to visit, and Benu was named back 221 00:14:00,040 --> 00:14:02,520 Speaker 1: in two thousand twelve, so this is probably all happening 222 00:14:02,520 --> 00:14:04,800 Speaker 1: around the same time, and then they decided to go 223 00:14:04,880 --> 00:14:08,319 Speaker 1: with a similar theme and they chose an Egyptian reference 224 00:14:08,800 --> 00:14:11,920 Speaker 1: when they named their own spacecraft. That's a guess on 225 00:14:11,960 --> 00:14:18,840 Speaker 1: my part. Now, officially, the acronym stands for Origins, Spectral Interpretation, 226 00:14:19,000 --> 00:14:25,960 Speaker 1: Resource Identification, Security, Regular Leath, Explorer Cyrus REX, and the 227 00:14:26,200 --> 00:14:30,040 Speaker 1: X is in lower case because explorer all the other 228 00:14:30,120 --> 00:14:32,800 Speaker 1: letters are upper case. Now, I think my guess that 229 00:14:32,920 --> 00:14:35,840 Speaker 1: it was a retroactive acronym, as a fair one with 230 00:14:35,920 --> 00:14:38,200 Speaker 1: a name like that doesn't just roll off the tongue. 231 00:14:38,240 --> 00:14:40,640 Speaker 1: But hey, I could be totally wrong. This is again 232 00:14:40,760 --> 00:14:43,240 Speaker 1: just a guess on my part. Maybe they came up 233 00:14:43,240 --> 00:14:45,440 Speaker 1: with the long name and then someone looked at the 234 00:14:45,520 --> 00:14:51,320 Speaker 1: initials and said hang on, and it was just gissemn. Well, 235 00:14:51,360 --> 00:14:53,560 Speaker 1: I'll talk about the equipment on O Cyrus REX in 236 00:14:53,600 --> 00:14:55,880 Speaker 1: a second, but first I want to talk about the 237 00:14:55,960 --> 00:14:59,680 Speaker 1: overall mission. The spacecraft launched as part of the payload 238 00:14:59,760 --> 00:15:04,800 Speaker 1: on a Atlas five rocket on September eight, two thousand sixteen. 239 00:15:05,440 --> 00:15:08,520 Speaker 1: About a year later, the Earth gave Osiris REX an 240 00:15:08,520 --> 00:15:12,960 Speaker 1: assist by way of a gravity boost. So Osiris kind 241 00:15:12,960 --> 00:15:15,520 Speaker 1: of entered into an orbit, and then in order to 242 00:15:15,640 --> 00:15:20,280 Speaker 1: put it on a intercept trajectory with Benu. As it 243 00:15:20,360 --> 00:15:23,440 Speaker 1: was completing this orbit and getting close to the Earth, 244 00:15:23,920 --> 00:15:26,920 Speaker 1: it passed near the Earth so it would get pulled 245 00:15:27,000 --> 00:15:32,480 Speaker 1: by Earth's gravity then used a deflection strategy to put 246 00:15:32,520 --> 00:15:36,680 Speaker 1: itself on it's its intercept trajectory with Benu and was 247 00:15:36,720 --> 00:15:39,800 Speaker 1: able to get a little speed boost that way. Another 248 00:15:39,920 --> 00:15:45,320 Speaker 1: year later, in August two eighteen, the spacecraft transitioned into 249 00:15:45,360 --> 00:15:49,400 Speaker 1: the approach phase. At this point, Osiris Rex was still 250 00:15:49,440 --> 00:15:53,160 Speaker 1: about two million kilometers or one point two million miles 251 00:15:53,240 --> 00:15:57,440 Speaker 1: away from Benu. This phase actually lasted several months and 252 00:15:57,480 --> 00:16:00,680 Speaker 1: would end on December third, two thousand eight team when 253 00:16:00,720 --> 00:16:03,000 Speaker 1: no Cyrus Rex was able to get a visual on 254 00:16:03,120 --> 00:16:05,880 Speaker 1: Benu and was starting to create a sort of map 255 00:16:06,120 --> 00:16:11,120 Speaker 1: for the team on Earth to study. Starting on December third, ten, 256 00:16:11,200 --> 00:16:15,240 Speaker 1: the spacecraft entered into the next phase, the preliminary survey phase. 257 00:16:15,840 --> 00:16:19,080 Speaker 1: At a distance of about seven kilometers or four point 258 00:16:19,120 --> 00:16:22,520 Speaker 1: three miles, a Cirrus Rex passed over the north pole, 259 00:16:22,600 --> 00:16:26,640 Speaker 1: equator and south pole of Benu a total of five times, 260 00:16:26,760 --> 00:16:28,520 Speaker 1: and the data was sent back to Earth so that 261 00:16:28,560 --> 00:16:32,240 Speaker 1: scientists could estimate things like the asteroids mass and get 262 00:16:32,280 --> 00:16:35,000 Speaker 1: a better idea for the shape of the asteroids, also 263 00:16:35,040 --> 00:16:38,400 Speaker 1: to learn how the asteroid was spinning in orbit, which 264 00:16:38,440 --> 00:16:42,280 Speaker 1: is all valuable information for planning the upcoming phases that 265 00:16:42,320 --> 00:16:46,360 Speaker 1: would follow next, on December thirty first, two thousand eighteen, 266 00:16:46,400 --> 00:16:49,560 Speaker 1: the spacecraft entered into a very close orbit with Benu, 267 00:16:50,080 --> 00:16:53,480 Speaker 1: which ranged from about one point six to two point 268 00:16:53,520 --> 00:16:57,040 Speaker 1: one kilometers in altitude above the asteroid or about point 269 00:16:57,160 --> 00:17:00,920 Speaker 1: nine nine to one point three miles not at the time, 270 00:17:01,480 --> 00:17:05,119 Speaker 1: this was the closest spacecraft had ever orbited a small 271 00:17:05,160 --> 00:17:08,879 Speaker 1: body in space, so this was the first time Osiris 272 00:17:08,920 --> 00:17:11,720 Speaker 1: REX set a record for that. And it was in 273 00:17:11,760 --> 00:17:15,520 Speaker 1: this phase that the navigation technique switched from being star 274 00:17:15,720 --> 00:17:18,439 Speaker 1: based in other words, it was using the stars to 275 00:17:18,560 --> 00:17:22,240 Speaker 1: navigate where it was going to becoming a landmarked based 276 00:17:22,359 --> 00:17:26,440 Speaker 1: navigation system, so now it's in respect to the asteroid itself. 277 00:17:26,840 --> 00:17:29,679 Speaker 1: During this phase, the navigation team on Earth could practice 278 00:17:29,720 --> 00:17:32,920 Speaker 1: maneuvering the spacecraft near the asteroid, which would be important 279 00:17:32,960 --> 00:17:35,840 Speaker 1: for the later phases as well. So each phase kind 280 00:17:35,840 --> 00:17:39,479 Speaker 1: of set the ground for the next phase, and that 281 00:17:39,560 --> 00:17:43,520 Speaker 1: next phase began on February two thousand nineteen. This one 282 00:17:43,600 --> 00:17:48,239 Speaker 1: was called the Detailed Survey Baseball Diamond phase and had 283 00:17:48,240 --> 00:17:51,200 Speaker 1: gotten that name early in the mission design process because 284 00:17:51,200 --> 00:17:54,920 Speaker 1: originally the plan was to have Osiris REX move around 285 00:17:54,920 --> 00:17:58,480 Speaker 1: in orbit in a shape reminiscent of a baseball diamond, 286 00:17:58,880 --> 00:18:02,960 Speaker 1: and the actual pattern changed during the mission design phase, 287 00:18:03,000 --> 00:18:06,160 Speaker 1: but the name stuck. Now. The purpose of those movements 288 00:18:06,640 --> 00:18:09,800 Speaker 1: is to produce a bunch of viewing angles of Benu's 289 00:18:09,880 --> 00:18:12,240 Speaker 1: surface to get a better idea not just of where 290 00:18:12,280 --> 00:18:16,000 Speaker 1: Osiris Rex might eventually make contact, but also teach us 291 00:18:16,040 --> 00:18:18,480 Speaker 1: more about what the asteroid is actually made out of. 292 00:18:19,280 --> 00:18:24,239 Speaker 1: Next was the detailed Survey Equatorial Stations phase, and that 293 00:18:24,280 --> 00:18:28,320 Speaker 1: phase was much more about finding an appropriate collection site 294 00:18:28,480 --> 00:18:31,680 Speaker 1: for the Osiris REX to take samples from the asteroid. 295 00:18:31,880 --> 00:18:34,840 Speaker 1: I'll cover that actual process in just a second, and 296 00:18:35,280 --> 00:18:38,920 Speaker 1: it's super cool, but before that can happen, the team 297 00:18:38,960 --> 00:18:42,320 Speaker 1: has to determine the right spot for it. The goal 298 00:18:42,359 --> 00:18:45,000 Speaker 1: of the phase was to select up to twelve potential 299 00:18:45,040 --> 00:18:48,600 Speaker 1: collection sites on the surface of Benu. This has proven 300 00:18:48,880 --> 00:18:51,560 Speaker 1: to be trickier than you think. As I mentioned earlier, 301 00:18:51,640 --> 00:18:55,840 Speaker 1: Benu is a bumpy little sucker, so finding spots that 302 00:18:56,119 --> 00:19:01,679 Speaker 1: are smooth and flat enough has been really challenging. The 303 00:19:01,720 --> 00:19:04,440 Speaker 1: team also has looked for evidence of loose regulars on 304 00:19:04,520 --> 00:19:08,440 Speaker 1: the surface of the asteroid. That's the loose soil. Essentially, 305 00:19:08,800 --> 00:19:11,800 Speaker 1: it's the stuff that the spacecraft will ultimately try to 306 00:19:11,840 --> 00:19:15,840 Speaker 1: collect on its sampling mission. The current phase that it's 307 00:19:15,880 --> 00:19:19,280 Speaker 1: in is orbital B. That's what broke the record that 308 00:19:19,320 --> 00:19:22,679 Speaker 1: Osiris REX had set during the orbital A phase by 309 00:19:22,720 --> 00:19:26,240 Speaker 1: getting even closer to Benu. Right now, Osiris REX is 310 00:19:26,280 --> 00:19:29,360 Speaker 1: gathering information that will be used to create as accurate 311 00:19:29,480 --> 00:19:32,000 Speaker 1: a three D model for the asteroids shape as we 312 00:19:32,040 --> 00:19:35,720 Speaker 1: can manage. It will also conduct a radio science experiment 313 00:19:35,800 --> 00:19:38,879 Speaker 1: during this phase, and the result of this phase is 314 00:19:39,480 --> 00:19:42,320 Speaker 1: meant to help the team determine which of those up 315 00:19:42,359 --> 00:19:45,480 Speaker 1: to twelve candidates would be best to focus on to 316 00:19:45,600 --> 00:19:50,199 Speaker 1: really eliminate ten of those twelve. So they're looking at 317 00:19:50,240 --> 00:19:55,200 Speaker 1: three criteria to select two potential landing spots. Those three 318 00:19:55,240 --> 00:20:01,000 Speaker 1: criteria are safety, sample ability, and science value. So it 319 00:20:01,119 --> 00:20:03,920 Speaker 1: needs to be able to score high on all three 320 00:20:03,920 --> 00:20:08,600 Speaker 1: of those to be considered a potential collection site. And 321 00:20:08,680 --> 00:20:11,479 Speaker 1: as I said, they will select two of them. One 322 00:20:11,520 --> 00:20:14,600 Speaker 1: of them will be the prime target, their number one choice, 323 00:20:14,920 --> 00:20:18,040 Speaker 1: and the second is their backup. Now, at the conclusion 324 00:20:18,200 --> 00:20:21,040 Speaker 1: of this phase of Cyrus REX will then enter a 325 00:20:21,160 --> 00:20:24,560 Speaker 1: third orbit, orbit See, but this one will actually be 326 00:20:24,640 --> 00:20:27,840 Speaker 1: further out than orbit will be, so orbit will See 327 00:20:27,920 --> 00:20:30,240 Speaker 1: will move o Cyrus Rex to about one point three 328 00:20:30,320 --> 00:20:33,680 Speaker 1: kilometers above the surface of the asteroid as it examines 329 00:20:33,760 --> 00:20:38,240 Speaker 1: particles on and around venue. Next, o Cirius Rex will 330 00:20:38,320 --> 00:20:41,199 Speaker 1: enter into a recon phase where it will take a 331 00:20:41,359 --> 00:20:45,560 Speaker 1: very close look at those two potential collection sites, and 332 00:20:45,600 --> 00:20:47,880 Speaker 1: it's going to pass at an altitude of around two 333 00:20:48,280 --> 00:20:53,400 Speaker 1: d or seven hundred thirty eight feet above benus surface. 334 00:20:54,080 --> 00:20:57,640 Speaker 1: At that distance, the cameras aboard the Osiris Rex can 335 00:20:57,680 --> 00:21:01,440 Speaker 1: focus on objects as small as two meters in size. 336 00:21:01,760 --> 00:21:04,199 Speaker 1: The team can then determine if their initial site or 337 00:21:04,240 --> 00:21:06,679 Speaker 1: the backup site would be the best bet for the 338 00:21:06,720 --> 00:21:10,040 Speaker 1: actual collection, so they can narrow their choices down to 339 00:21:10,280 --> 00:21:15,560 Speaker 1: their actual you know end target. Before committing to that course, 340 00:21:16,040 --> 00:21:19,119 Speaker 1: the team will hold a couple of rehearsal events. They 341 00:21:19,119 --> 00:21:21,800 Speaker 1: will practice moving the spacecraft out of its orbit to 342 00:21:21,880 --> 00:21:25,639 Speaker 1: fly above the landing site, initially at an altitude of 343 00:21:25,680 --> 00:21:30,240 Speaker 1: about four hundred ten feet or one ms above the 344 00:21:30,280 --> 00:21:34,800 Speaker 1: collection site. Then they will maneuver the Osiris Rex back 345 00:21:34,800 --> 00:21:39,119 Speaker 1: into orbit. On the second rehearsal, the Osiris Rex will 346 00:21:39,119 --> 00:21:44,160 Speaker 1: actually descend further and hover over the collection site, well 347 00:21:44,240 --> 00:21:47,359 Speaker 1: over it, but still over it, before returning to orbit again. 348 00:21:48,400 --> 00:21:50,879 Speaker 1: After all of that, if assuing all of it goes 349 00:21:50,880 --> 00:21:55,520 Speaker 1: well at showtime. The critical phase is called TAG, and 350 00:21:55,640 --> 00:22:00,360 Speaker 1: TAG stands for touch and go, which should happen in Also, 351 00:22:00,720 --> 00:22:05,320 Speaker 1: i've heard people erroneously say that the game tag stands 352 00:22:05,359 --> 00:22:08,720 Speaker 1: for touch and go. That does not appear to be true. 353 00:22:08,800 --> 00:22:12,200 Speaker 1: The etymology of the word is older than that particular 354 00:22:13,040 --> 00:22:17,200 Speaker 1: phrase has been, so I don't think that that really 355 00:22:17,920 --> 00:22:20,800 Speaker 1: applies to the game tag, but it certainly applies to 356 00:22:20,920 --> 00:22:26,000 Speaker 1: this process with os Cyrus Rex. I'll explain what the 357 00:22:26,040 --> 00:22:29,320 Speaker 1: collection process is in just a moment. But after that phase, 358 00:22:29,640 --> 00:22:32,600 Speaker 1: the spacecraft's thrusters will push it back from Beneu to 359 00:22:32,680 --> 00:22:35,280 Speaker 1: a safe distance and it will kind of chill out 360 00:22:35,520 --> 00:22:40,240 Speaker 1: at that safe distance until March one. At that time 361 00:22:40,520 --> 00:22:45,000 Speaker 1: it will enter into the return cruise phase, and that's 362 00:22:45,080 --> 00:22:47,920 Speaker 1: what's supposed to bring Osiris Rex home. So why is 363 00:22:47,960 --> 00:22:50,960 Speaker 1: it waiting. It's waiting because, just as I've talked about, 364 00:22:51,480 --> 00:22:54,199 Speaker 1: when it comes to going from Earth to Mars, you 365 00:22:54,200 --> 00:22:57,000 Speaker 1: have to wait for the orbits of the different bodies 366 00:22:57,240 --> 00:23:00,440 Speaker 1: to aligne up properly to make the trip up as 367 00:23:00,440 --> 00:23:06,399 Speaker 1: efficiently as possible. So that won't happen until March one. Uh, 368 00:23:06,520 --> 00:23:11,080 Speaker 1: and that's when Osiris REX can start its intercept trajectory 369 00:23:11,119 --> 00:23:15,560 Speaker 1: to Earth anyway onto the spacecraft itself with its solar 370 00:23:15,600 --> 00:23:19,720 Speaker 1: panels deployed. It measures six point two meters or twenty 371 00:23:19,800 --> 00:23:23,640 Speaker 1: point to five feet in length. It's two point four 372 00:23:23,760 --> 00:23:29,360 Speaker 1: meters wide. Uh, that's essentially eight feet, and it's sort 373 00:23:29,359 --> 00:23:32,440 Speaker 1: of like a rectangular prism, so the width measured either 374 00:23:32,600 --> 00:23:35,399 Speaker 1: left right or up down with respect to its length 375 00:23:35,520 --> 00:23:40,480 Speaker 1: is the same. It weighs two thousand rams when full 376 00:23:40,480 --> 00:23:44,240 Speaker 1: of fuel. That's about four thousand, six hundred fifty pounds, 377 00:23:44,240 --> 00:23:47,280 Speaker 1: so it's hefty when it's fully fuelled. The spacecraft is 378 00:23:47,320 --> 00:23:51,160 Speaker 1: home to five science instruments as well as the system 379 00:23:51,240 --> 00:23:55,080 Speaker 1: called tag SAM. Tag SAM stands for Touch and Goes 380 00:23:55,119 --> 00:23:59,320 Speaker 1: Sample Acquisition Mechanism, so this is the actual device that's 381 00:23:59,359 --> 00:24:03,680 Speaker 1: going to do the collecting. The tag SAM is part 382 00:24:03,760 --> 00:24:09,040 Speaker 1: of the Osiris REX that will actually make contact with Benu, 383 00:24:09,080 --> 00:24:11,800 Speaker 1: and it looks kind of like a pogo stick that 384 00:24:11,920 --> 00:24:15,040 Speaker 1: extends out from one side of the spacecraft, but this 385 00:24:15,119 --> 00:24:18,480 Speaker 1: is a pretty powerful pogo stick. Inside of the tag 386 00:24:18,520 --> 00:24:21,000 Speaker 1: SAM is a mechanism that will direct a jet of 387 00:24:21,080 --> 00:24:25,119 Speaker 1: nitrogen gas to quote fluid ize regular to allow the 388 00:24:25,200 --> 00:24:29,080 Speaker 1: sample head to capture granular material, while contact pads capture 389 00:24:29,160 --> 00:24:34,119 Speaker 1: fine material end quote. So it's blasting the surface with 390 00:24:34,200 --> 00:24:37,000 Speaker 1: this jet of gas and then collecting what ends up 391 00:24:37,040 --> 00:24:41,760 Speaker 1: flying out. The whole process should last about five seconds. 392 00:24:42,280 --> 00:24:45,959 Speaker 1: Then springs in the tag SAM will actually expand, pushing 393 00:24:46,000 --> 00:24:49,040 Speaker 1: Osiris rex off the surface of Benu, so you could 394 00:24:49,119 --> 00:24:51,440 Speaker 1: argue it really is like a high tech pogo stick. 395 00:24:52,040 --> 00:24:54,639 Speaker 1: The team on Earth will initiate commands to make Osiris 396 00:24:54,680 --> 00:24:58,080 Speaker 1: rex spin, and the purpose for that is to figure 397 00:24:58,119 --> 00:25:01,280 Speaker 1: out how much stuff did it actually collect. They will 398 00:25:01,320 --> 00:25:05,200 Speaker 1: monitor the change in the spacecraft's inertia, and by looking 399 00:25:05,200 --> 00:25:08,199 Speaker 1: at the difference in inertia between when the spacecraft was 400 00:25:08,920 --> 00:25:11,200 Speaker 1: had before it had taken the sample and after it 401 00:25:11,200 --> 00:25:14,640 Speaker 1: had taken the sample, they can then deduce how much 402 00:25:14,680 --> 00:25:17,760 Speaker 1: material it actually collected, and if it's not enough, the 403 00:25:17,800 --> 00:25:20,960 Speaker 1: spacecraft actually has enough nitrogen gas to make two more 404 00:25:21,000 --> 00:25:24,480 Speaker 1: attempts before it runs out, so it can do three 405 00:25:24,520 --> 00:25:30,119 Speaker 1: of these collection leaps before it is done. Mechanisms in 406 00:25:30,160 --> 00:25:33,160 Speaker 1: the spacecraft will move the sample from the tag SAM 407 00:25:33,200 --> 00:25:38,600 Speaker 1: tool to a sample return capsule UH or s r C. 408 00:25:39,119 --> 00:25:42,400 Speaker 1: It's essentially a protected container designed to be retrieved when 409 00:25:42,440 --> 00:25:45,919 Speaker 1: Osiris rex gets back to Earth. More on that than 410 00:25:45,960 --> 00:25:49,080 Speaker 1: a bit. As for the other scientific instruments I did 411 00:25:49,160 --> 00:25:51,720 Speaker 1: mention there were five of them. They include the O 412 00:25:51,960 --> 00:25:56,040 Speaker 1: Cam's instrument Suite that's a collection of special cameras that 413 00:25:56,080 --> 00:25:58,919 Speaker 1: are taking all those amazing images of Benu right now, 414 00:25:58,960 --> 00:26:02,399 Speaker 1: and honestly, if you have and scends, go online and 415 00:26:02,440 --> 00:26:05,879 Speaker 1: search for Benu b in b E n n U 416 00:26:06,320 --> 00:26:11,080 Speaker 1: asteroid because the most recent photos are pretty amazing. Then 417 00:26:11,119 --> 00:26:14,920 Speaker 1: they have a laser altimeter or o l A that 418 00:26:15,040 --> 00:26:17,800 Speaker 1: is using lasers to create a detailed three D map 419 00:26:17,920 --> 00:26:20,879 Speaker 1: of bnus shape. And I've talked about how these worked before, 420 00:26:20,920 --> 00:26:23,040 Speaker 1: but the basic idea is that you have a laser 421 00:26:23,240 --> 00:26:25,639 Speaker 1: and you have a sensor, So you fire the laser 422 00:26:25,880 --> 00:26:28,240 Speaker 1: and the sensor picks up the reflections of the laser 423 00:26:28,280 --> 00:26:30,520 Speaker 1: after the laser has made contact with the surface of 424 00:26:30,600 --> 00:26:33,480 Speaker 1: whatever it is you're aiming at. By looking at how 425 00:26:33,480 --> 00:26:36,240 Speaker 1: long it took for the laser to travel from the 426 00:26:36,320 --> 00:26:40,320 Speaker 1: laser point to hit the the surface of the substance 427 00:26:40,320 --> 00:26:42,280 Speaker 1: and then back for the sensor to pick it up, 428 00:26:42,800 --> 00:26:45,840 Speaker 1: you can tell how far away or how close something is. 429 00:26:46,320 --> 00:26:48,199 Speaker 1: So if you do this a lot, if you know 430 00:26:48,240 --> 00:26:50,720 Speaker 1: how far away you are from the object, and you 431 00:26:50,760 --> 00:26:52,880 Speaker 1: do this a lot across the surface of the object. 432 00:26:53,160 --> 00:26:56,399 Speaker 1: You can use that information to make a detailed map 433 00:26:56,640 --> 00:26:59,439 Speaker 1: of the surface features of whatever that object is. And 434 00:26:59,520 --> 00:27:02,160 Speaker 1: we do this on Earth too, but it's very useful 435 00:27:02,200 --> 00:27:05,560 Speaker 1: out in space. And then you've got the thermal emission 436 00:27:05,640 --> 00:27:10,760 Speaker 1: spectrometer or O t E s OTIS. The spectrometer's job 437 00:27:10,800 --> 00:27:13,800 Speaker 1: is to analyze the mineral and chemical composition of Benu, 438 00:27:14,080 --> 00:27:17,439 Speaker 1: as well as to measure the surface temperature of the asteroid. Next, 439 00:27:17,800 --> 00:27:22,480 Speaker 1: you've got the Visible and Infrared Spectrometer or OVERS. The 440 00:27:22,600 --> 00:27:24,600 Speaker 1: O in all of these, by the way, stands for 441 00:27:24,680 --> 00:27:29,240 Speaker 1: osiris REX. This particular instrument is going to measure light 442 00:27:29,320 --> 00:27:32,320 Speaker 1: from Binu both in the visible and near infrared spectrum, 443 00:27:32,520 --> 00:27:34,960 Speaker 1: and that analysis could indicate the presence of stuff like 444 00:27:35,080 --> 00:27:39,640 Speaker 1: water or organic material. Finally, there's the regular X ray 445 00:27:39,840 --> 00:27:44,320 Speaker 1: imaging spectrometer or REXUS, which will image X ray emissions 446 00:27:44,320 --> 00:27:47,120 Speaker 1: from Benu, and that will tell us which elements are 447 00:27:47,480 --> 00:27:51,000 Speaker 1: most abundant on the asteroid, So it kind of gives 448 00:27:51,040 --> 00:27:53,959 Speaker 1: us an idea of how much concentration there is of 449 00:27:54,119 --> 00:27:58,280 Speaker 1: each element that's present. So in March two, THO one. 450 00:27:58,480 --> 00:28:02,360 Speaker 1: Assuming everything went well, the Osiris Rex spacecraft will begin 451 00:28:02,359 --> 00:28:05,040 Speaker 1: its journey back to Earth. They will enter into an 452 00:28:05,119 --> 00:28:07,440 Speaker 1: orbit around the Sun that again will bring it close 453 00:28:07,560 --> 00:28:08,960 Speaker 1: enough to the Earth for the next part of the 454 00:28:08,960 --> 00:28:11,920 Speaker 1: mission to commence, and that will happen in the fall 455 00:28:12,000 --> 00:28:15,919 Speaker 1: of twenty twenty three, so from twenty to the spring 456 00:28:16,080 --> 00:28:19,560 Speaker 1: of one to the fall of tree it will be 457 00:28:19,600 --> 00:28:22,199 Speaker 1: in this orbit. So it takes a long time to 458 00:28:22,200 --> 00:28:24,760 Speaker 1: get around in space, particularly when all the stuff out 459 00:28:24,760 --> 00:28:28,280 Speaker 1: in space insists on moving around in orbits and stuff. 460 00:28:29,119 --> 00:28:31,840 Speaker 1: So when it's close enough, then the spacecraft is going 461 00:28:31,840 --> 00:28:35,440 Speaker 1: to jettison that sample return capsule to put it on 462 00:28:35,520 --> 00:28:39,040 Speaker 1: an intercept trajectory towards Earth, like an actual collision course 463 00:28:39,080 --> 00:28:43,680 Speaker 1: towards Earth. Then Osiris Rex will follow a deflection maneuver 464 00:28:44,000 --> 00:28:46,680 Speaker 1: and place itself in a stable orbit around the Sun 465 00:28:47,040 --> 00:28:49,360 Speaker 1: where it won't be in the way of anything. The 466 00:28:49,480 --> 00:28:52,960 Speaker 1: capsule will in our Earth's atmosphere, and when it reaches 467 00:28:53,000 --> 00:28:56,200 Speaker 1: an altitude of twenty point eight miles or thirty three 468 00:28:56,240 --> 00:29:00,040 Speaker 1: point five kilometers, it will deploy a drogue pair a 469 00:29:00,120 --> 00:29:03,520 Speaker 1: shoote and when it descends to one point nine miles 470 00:29:03,520 --> 00:29:07,120 Speaker 1: in altitude or three kilometers. Then it will deploy the 471 00:29:07,240 --> 00:29:11,120 Speaker 1: main parachute. Assuming all goes as planned, it should touch 472 00:29:11,200 --> 00:29:17,720 Speaker 1: down in Utah on Septembree. Pretty amazing to have it 473 00:29:17,760 --> 00:29:20,480 Speaker 1: all plotted out to the day, this far in advance, 474 00:29:20,840 --> 00:29:23,760 Speaker 1: and it just tells you how exact these processes have 475 00:29:23,920 --> 00:29:27,800 Speaker 1: to be. Now. Upon retrieval again, assuming everything's gone well, 476 00:29:28,480 --> 00:29:34,080 Speaker 1: the contents of that capsule will undergo incredible scrutiny and analysis. 477 00:29:34,280 --> 00:29:38,280 Speaker 1: Researchers will look for any signs of organic compounds. In 478 00:29:38,320 --> 00:29:41,160 Speaker 1: the end, will learn a lot about stuff that could 479 00:29:41,160 --> 00:29:44,360 Speaker 1: come in useful for many future missions, including dealing with 480 00:29:44,400 --> 00:29:49,800 Speaker 1: potentially hazardous asteroids and asteroid mining. More on that in 481 00:29:49,920 --> 00:29:52,880 Speaker 1: just a bit, but first let's take another quick break. 482 00:30:00,280 --> 00:30:03,920 Speaker 1: While o Cyrus rex was sending back incredible photos of 483 00:30:04,000 --> 00:30:07,320 Speaker 1: Benu from just a few hundred meters away, other space 484 00:30:07,400 --> 00:30:11,320 Speaker 1: news was also focusing on asteroids and our future with them, 485 00:30:11,520 --> 00:30:16,080 Speaker 1: NASA awarded a grant to a company called trans Astronautica Corporation. 486 00:30:16,240 --> 00:30:20,360 Speaker 1: Sometimes it's just referred to as Transastra. The company is 487 00:30:20,520 --> 00:30:25,280 Speaker 1: designing flight systems that follow the asteroid provided institute supplies 488 00:30:25,520 --> 00:30:31,240 Speaker 1: structure or APIs architecture, as the name implies, This type 489 00:30:31,240 --> 00:30:34,800 Speaker 1: of technology is meant to harvest materials from asteroids in 490 00:30:35,000 --> 00:30:38,760 Speaker 1: space rather than taking the asteroids somewhere else to mind them. 491 00:30:39,120 --> 00:30:41,880 Speaker 1: And there are a lot of different designs that follow 492 00:30:42,080 --> 00:30:46,000 Speaker 1: this particular concept. Some of them are landers or rovers 493 00:30:46,080 --> 00:30:49,520 Speaker 1: that can use my various mining techniques to pull stuff 494 00:30:49,520 --> 00:30:53,120 Speaker 1: out from asteroids or collect regularly from the surface. But 495 00:30:53,240 --> 00:30:57,560 Speaker 1: transastras design is a little different. They call their approach 496 00:30:57,680 --> 00:31:02,080 Speaker 1: the Mini B system, and really they have a whole 497 00:31:02,080 --> 00:31:05,640 Speaker 1: collection of different devices of different sizes that fall under 498 00:31:05,680 --> 00:31:08,880 Speaker 1: this general category. The Mini BE itself is sort of 499 00:31:08,920 --> 00:31:14,880 Speaker 1: a prototype, proof of concept spacecraft. It's a two m spacecraft, 500 00:31:14,960 --> 00:31:18,520 Speaker 1: so it's not it's not as big as the future 501 00:31:18,680 --> 00:31:22,440 Speaker 1: versions are going to be, but it will serve as 502 00:31:22,480 --> 00:31:27,680 Speaker 1: a test bed for a type of mining called optical mining, 503 00:31:28,000 --> 00:31:33,120 Speaker 1: meant to largely extracts stuff like volatiles and water from asteroids. Now, 504 00:31:33,160 --> 00:31:35,280 Speaker 1: in the case with the Mini BE, it will work 505 00:31:35,320 --> 00:31:38,680 Speaker 1: with a simulated asteroid to make sure that everything is 506 00:31:38,720 --> 00:31:42,480 Speaker 1: working the way it's supposed to uh. The many BE 507 00:31:42,720 --> 00:31:48,840 Speaker 1: will capture the simulated asteroid the way the B spacecraft 508 00:31:48,840 --> 00:31:54,040 Speaker 1: are are designed. They have a large chamber that is 509 00:31:54,120 --> 00:31:57,320 Speaker 1: essentially made up of a bag, and so it's a 510 00:31:57,360 --> 00:32:02,200 Speaker 1: flexible bag that is open on one end. Inside the 511 00:32:02,240 --> 00:32:05,640 Speaker 1: bag is a grapple net. It's a net that actually 512 00:32:05,680 --> 00:32:08,040 Speaker 1: has actuators on it, so we can open and close, 513 00:32:08,520 --> 00:32:11,560 Speaker 1: and the bag itself can also close. So the idea 514 00:32:11,600 --> 00:32:16,640 Speaker 1: is that the many be will end up capturing this 515 00:32:16,840 --> 00:32:20,800 Speaker 1: simulated asteroid in a way that the larger bee family 516 00:32:20,960 --> 00:32:25,000 Speaker 1: will also do. So this is how the process works, 517 00:32:25,040 --> 00:32:27,520 Speaker 1: because it's pretty fascinating. I watched a whole video on 518 00:32:27,560 --> 00:32:30,600 Speaker 1: this and I was really blown away by the approach. 519 00:32:31,000 --> 00:32:33,320 Speaker 1: So first of all, you have to imagine that this 520 00:32:33,520 --> 00:32:38,120 Speaker 1: spacecraft is approaching a small asteroid and the asteroids rotating. 521 00:32:38,200 --> 00:32:42,200 Speaker 1: As I mentioned earlier, Benu rotates, so asteroid is rotating, 522 00:32:42,360 --> 00:32:45,800 Speaker 1: and so you are approaching along the axis of rotation. 523 00:32:46,320 --> 00:32:51,000 Speaker 1: So it's it's like you're coming directly at the end 524 00:32:51,240 --> 00:32:54,840 Speaker 1: of its rotation. Uh. So you're watching it turn and 525 00:32:54,920 --> 00:32:57,880 Speaker 1: let's say a clockwise motion just for the sake of 526 00:32:58,800 --> 00:33:03,720 Speaker 1: imagining this. Uh. The spacecraft first matches speed with the asteroid, 527 00:33:04,080 --> 00:33:08,280 Speaker 1: so they can then very slowly approach so that this 528 00:33:08,360 --> 00:33:13,080 Speaker 1: bag and the net inside the bag can fit over 529 00:33:13,240 --> 00:33:17,680 Speaker 1: the asteroid. The idea is that you position the spacecraft 530 00:33:17,800 --> 00:33:21,440 Speaker 1: so that the net is ready to grapple with the 531 00:33:21,480 --> 00:33:27,240 Speaker 1: asteroid itself. However, before that happens, the spacecraft matches the 532 00:33:27,360 --> 00:33:30,520 Speaker 1: rotation of the asteroid itself, so that way from the 533 00:33:30,520 --> 00:33:32,920 Speaker 1: frame of reference of the asteroid, it appears that the 534 00:33:32,960 --> 00:33:36,520 Speaker 1: spacecraft isn't moving at all because they both are matching 535 00:33:36,560 --> 00:33:41,240 Speaker 1: their rotation together. That this is very important because otherwise, obviously, 536 00:33:41,480 --> 00:33:45,720 Speaker 1: if the spacecraft is not rotating with at the same 537 00:33:45,720 --> 00:33:49,440 Speaker 1: speed as the asteroid, then if the net tries to 538 00:33:49,480 --> 00:33:53,360 Speaker 1: grip is gonna twist. So by spinning the spacecraft at 539 00:33:53,400 --> 00:33:56,840 Speaker 1: the same speed that the asteroid is spinning, they look 540 00:33:57,320 --> 00:34:02,400 Speaker 1: still in reference to one another. Remember this is relativity. 541 00:34:02,560 --> 00:34:05,959 Speaker 1: It's all dependent upon your frame of reference. Now, at 542 00:34:06,000 --> 00:34:09,720 Speaker 1: that point, the spacecraft can close the net which grips 543 00:34:09,800 --> 00:34:13,520 Speaker 1: on to the asteroid, and then the capture bag that's 544 00:34:13,600 --> 00:34:18,080 Speaker 1: on the outside of this net also closes, and this 545 00:34:18,239 --> 00:34:23,120 Speaker 1: provides a protective barrier that actually completely encapsulates the asteroid 546 00:34:23,160 --> 00:34:26,120 Speaker 1: inside it. Then the thrusters on the spacecraft will fire 547 00:34:26,400 --> 00:34:28,960 Speaker 1: to counteract the rotation, so it's kind of like a 548 00:34:29,000 --> 00:34:33,480 Speaker 1: break You start to stop the rotation of the asteroid 549 00:34:33,840 --> 00:34:37,440 Speaker 1: and use those to orient the spacecraft in relation to 550 00:34:37,480 --> 00:34:40,560 Speaker 1: the sun, because the sun provides the power for the 551 00:34:40,600 --> 00:34:44,720 Speaker 1: actual mining operation. Remember I mentioned it was optical mining. 552 00:34:44,960 --> 00:34:48,160 Speaker 1: Well here's where that plays in. The spacecraft will have 553 00:34:48,239 --> 00:34:52,719 Speaker 1: reflectors that will concentrate sunlight so it can be directed 554 00:34:53,080 --> 00:34:56,480 Speaker 1: and focused on the surface of in this case, the 555 00:34:56,600 --> 00:35:01,560 Speaker 1: simulated asteroid, but in future Jan's assuming this works, it 556 00:35:01,560 --> 00:35:04,760 Speaker 1: will be on actual asteroids, and that light will heat 557 00:35:04,960 --> 00:35:08,040 Speaker 1: up the surface of the asteroid, which will force it 558 00:35:08,080 --> 00:35:10,719 Speaker 1: to release volatiles and water, and it will break up 559 00:35:10,760 --> 00:35:13,480 Speaker 1: the asteroid. Actually, if you heat it up enough and 560 00:35:13,800 --> 00:35:16,560 Speaker 1: that molecular structure starts to break down, it's kind of 561 00:35:16,560 --> 00:35:20,200 Speaker 1: like using a magnifying glass to concentrate sunlight and use 562 00:35:20,239 --> 00:35:24,960 Speaker 1: it to burn wood. Collected gases will go into inflatable 563 00:35:25,000 --> 00:35:30,080 Speaker 1: containers that will have passive cooling from space itself. You know, 564 00:35:30,120 --> 00:35:33,000 Speaker 1: space is very cold, so essentially you have these bags 565 00:35:33,000 --> 00:35:36,879 Speaker 1: that are uh the outside is open to space, and 566 00:35:37,080 --> 00:35:39,319 Speaker 1: you collect all the gases and water vapor in there, 567 00:35:39,800 --> 00:35:43,439 Speaker 1: and because of the incredibly cold temperatures, all that heat 568 00:35:43,560 --> 00:35:46,040 Speaker 1: radiates away and you end up with bags of ice 569 00:35:46,880 --> 00:35:50,440 Speaker 1: ice not just of water, but also these volatile gases. 570 00:35:51,760 --> 00:35:55,000 Speaker 1: The slag, so In other words, the rocks and the 571 00:35:55,000 --> 00:35:58,480 Speaker 1: other materials will go into collection bags at the base 572 00:35:58,680 --> 00:36:01,279 Speaker 1: of the large capture bags, So there's going to be 573 00:36:01,400 --> 00:36:06,560 Speaker 1: sort of assorting mechanism that will shoot this regular these 574 00:36:06,680 --> 00:36:11,400 Speaker 1: rocks and the metals and things that are the solids 575 00:36:11,600 --> 00:36:16,399 Speaker 1: from the asteroid into these collection bags. And ideally one 576 00:36:16,440 --> 00:36:18,480 Speaker 1: of these B devices would be able to do this 577 00:36:18,560 --> 00:36:21,080 Speaker 1: to a few different asteroids before it would need to 578 00:36:21,080 --> 00:36:23,960 Speaker 1: be emptied. But the goal of the MINIB isn't to 579 00:36:23,960 --> 00:36:26,200 Speaker 1: go into full operation. It's really just to show that 580 00:36:26,360 --> 00:36:29,359 Speaker 1: this approach is viable and could work on a much 581 00:36:29,400 --> 00:36:32,000 Speaker 1: larger scale, and that's where the bigger versions of the 582 00:36:32,000 --> 00:36:35,120 Speaker 1: B family would come in. So if the MINIB proves 583 00:36:35,160 --> 00:36:38,520 Speaker 1: to be effective, then we might see the larger ones. 584 00:36:39,080 --> 00:36:41,439 Speaker 1: One of those is called the honey Bee that would 585 00:36:41,480 --> 00:36:45,000 Speaker 1: be able to mine asteroids that measure about ten meters 586 00:36:45,040 --> 00:36:49,960 Speaker 1: in size, So that's a pretty big capture bag and 587 00:36:50,120 --> 00:36:52,719 Speaker 1: net that would have to be used, and like the 588 00:36:52,760 --> 00:36:55,960 Speaker 1: Mini B I would capture asteroids in that same process. 589 00:36:56,080 --> 00:36:58,120 Speaker 1: And this is important for lots of reasons. One is 590 00:36:58,120 --> 00:37:00,000 Speaker 1: that you don't want to lose any of those resources 591 00:37:00,000 --> 00:37:03,040 Speaker 1: as they get released during the optical mining process, and 592 00:37:03,200 --> 00:37:06,080 Speaker 1: other is that as an asteroid breaks down, it is 593 00:37:06,080 --> 00:37:08,640 Speaker 1: going to break into lots of little pieces. Capturing the 594 00:37:08,680 --> 00:37:11,560 Speaker 1: asteroid means those pieces aren't just floating off and forming 595 00:37:11,560 --> 00:37:13,680 Speaker 1: a cloud of space junk that could be a potential 596 00:37:13,719 --> 00:37:16,640 Speaker 1: hazard for future missions. So it's very important to to 597 00:37:17,120 --> 00:37:21,640 Speaker 1: contain all of that. And the company actually proposes gathering 598 00:37:21,719 --> 00:37:24,600 Speaker 1: up all the unusable rubble, the stuff that can't be 599 00:37:24,680 --> 00:37:28,440 Speaker 1: used for construction purposes or used for metal or whatever 600 00:37:28,480 --> 00:37:31,200 Speaker 1: it may be. You take all that other stuff what 601 00:37:31,239 --> 00:37:35,160 Speaker 1: would just be useless slag from this mining process, and 602 00:37:35,200 --> 00:37:40,160 Speaker 1: then fill up tubes with this slag. So imagine long 603 00:37:40,360 --> 00:37:44,759 Speaker 1: plastic tubes, these containers that are just full of all 604 00:37:44,800 --> 00:37:48,880 Speaker 1: this asteroid slag. Then they could use those tubes filled 605 00:37:48,920 --> 00:37:53,120 Speaker 1: with slag as shielding for space stations or habitats. The 606 00:37:53,200 --> 00:37:56,680 Speaker 1: material could act as a method to absorb harmful radiation, 607 00:37:56,840 --> 00:37:59,280 Speaker 1: which is a pretty creative way to handle the waste 608 00:37:59,280 --> 00:38:03,080 Speaker 1: byproduct of a mining process. I do wonder how sustainable 609 00:38:03,120 --> 00:38:05,400 Speaker 1: that is in the long term, because I imagine at 610 00:38:05,480 --> 00:38:09,040 Speaker 1: some point you wouldn't need to shield anything else out there, right, 611 00:38:09,080 --> 00:38:12,440 Speaker 1: you would have built enough shields while you're still mining 612 00:38:12,440 --> 00:38:15,680 Speaker 1: asteroids for their materials. But maybe I'm thinking too small, 613 00:38:15,840 --> 00:38:19,600 Speaker 1: and maybe the future will include unimaginable expansion into space, 614 00:38:20,120 --> 00:38:24,080 Speaker 1: and maybe that's more realistic considering the history of humanity 615 00:38:24,120 --> 00:38:26,839 Speaker 1: on Earth. It's just hard for me to imagine right now. 616 00:38:27,400 --> 00:38:30,080 Speaker 1: Next in the line of flight systems as the Queen 617 00:38:30,160 --> 00:38:32,680 Speaker 1: be which would be able to capture asteroids of up 618 00:38:32,680 --> 00:38:36,920 Speaker 1: to forty meters in size, and like the smaller cousins, 619 00:38:36,920 --> 00:38:39,920 Speaker 1: it would follow the exact same process, you know, the 620 00:38:39,960 --> 00:38:43,920 Speaker 1: general procedure of encapsulating and then optically mining asteroids would 621 00:38:43,920 --> 00:38:48,000 Speaker 1: just be bigger. The thrusters on the B devices will 622 00:38:48,040 --> 00:38:51,480 Speaker 1: actually use harvested water to provide thrust, so the B 623 00:38:51,680 --> 00:38:54,640 Speaker 1: devices will be able to continue to operate in space 624 00:38:55,080 --> 00:38:58,120 Speaker 1: as they extract resources from asteroids, and you don't have 625 00:38:58,160 --> 00:39:01,240 Speaker 1: to worry about having a huge amount of fuel on board. 626 00:39:01,520 --> 00:39:03,439 Speaker 1: And they actually do this in a pretty simple way. 627 00:39:03,440 --> 00:39:07,200 Speaker 1: They're not using the water as rocket fuel precisely. What 628 00:39:07,320 --> 00:39:11,040 Speaker 1: happens is they will funnel the water into a chamber, 629 00:39:11,080 --> 00:39:14,480 Speaker 1: and that chamber will be exposed to focused sunlight, and 630 00:39:14,520 --> 00:39:17,320 Speaker 1: that will heat up the water past its boiling point, 631 00:39:17,719 --> 00:39:20,160 Speaker 1: which will turn it into a gas, and the gas 632 00:39:20,160 --> 00:39:23,359 Speaker 1: will force its way out of a nozzle that's at 633 00:39:23,360 --> 00:39:26,239 Speaker 1: the base of the chamber and that creates thrust. So 634 00:39:26,280 --> 00:39:28,120 Speaker 1: the bees will only use a small amount of the 635 00:39:28,160 --> 00:39:31,239 Speaker 1: water that they collect as propellant, and the rest of 636 00:39:31,239 --> 00:39:33,920 Speaker 1: the water would be delivered to fuel depots in space, 637 00:39:34,160 --> 00:39:36,960 Speaker 1: and that water can then be used to produce rocket fuel. 638 00:39:37,719 --> 00:39:40,440 Speaker 1: If it works, it could help form the basis for 639 00:39:40,560 --> 00:39:44,359 Speaker 1: deep space exploration. Rather than shooting fuel up into space 640 00:39:44,400 --> 00:39:47,600 Speaker 1: from Earth, will just make it out there in space 641 00:39:47,800 --> 00:39:50,920 Speaker 1: in the first place. Now, these spacecraft could lead to 642 00:39:50,960 --> 00:39:54,279 Speaker 1: the development of more space mining equipment, as well as 643 00:39:54,280 --> 00:39:58,080 Speaker 1: plans for the fabrication facilities that would turn slag into 644 00:39:58,200 --> 00:40:01,319 Speaker 1: usable construction material and space, not to mention those fuel 645 00:40:01,360 --> 00:40:03,520 Speaker 1: depots that would be needed to make use of the 646 00:40:03,560 --> 00:40:07,360 Speaker 1: harvested volatiles and water. So this is just one small 647 00:40:07,600 --> 00:40:10,440 Speaker 1: piece in a very large puzzle that we're going to 648 00:40:10,520 --> 00:40:13,640 Speaker 1: have to construct in order to make asteroid mining a 649 00:40:13,680 --> 00:40:18,279 Speaker 1: practical technology and part of an overall working strategy for 650 00:40:18,360 --> 00:40:22,560 Speaker 1: deep space exploration and colonization. And the minib system is 651 00:40:22,640 --> 00:40:25,839 Speaker 1: just one proposed approach. I don't mean to say it's 652 00:40:25,880 --> 00:40:28,040 Speaker 1: the only way this is going to happen. It's just 653 00:40:28,160 --> 00:40:31,120 Speaker 1: one proposal that got some funding. There are lots of 654 00:40:31,120 --> 00:40:34,160 Speaker 1: other ones out there too, and some of them don't 655 00:40:34,320 --> 00:40:38,080 Speaker 1: use optical mining. Some of them use different methods. There 656 00:40:38,080 --> 00:40:41,480 Speaker 1: are several private companies exploring the possibilities and testing out 657 00:40:41,560 --> 00:40:45,560 Speaker 1: different systems or subsystems with the goal of asteroid mining 658 00:40:45,600 --> 00:40:48,880 Speaker 1: in mind. We're likely to see some combination of several 659 00:40:48,920 --> 00:40:52,480 Speaker 1: different approaches should it turn out that it's a viable pursuit. 660 00:40:52,960 --> 00:40:55,600 Speaker 1: I doubt any single way is going to become the 661 00:40:55,680 --> 00:41:00,600 Speaker 1: only method we rely upon. The prospects look fairly promising, 662 00:41:00,719 --> 00:41:02,960 Speaker 1: but there's still a lot of work to be done, 663 00:41:03,280 --> 00:41:06,440 Speaker 1: and if it is successful, we could see new efforts 664 00:41:06,440 --> 00:41:10,280 Speaker 1: to travel to more distant locations like Mars and beyond. 665 00:41:10,960 --> 00:41:14,120 Speaker 1: Being able to replenish resources while out in space would 666 00:41:14,160 --> 00:41:17,440 Speaker 1: mitigate one of the major challenges standing in our way, 667 00:41:17,800 --> 00:41:20,880 Speaker 1: though it would be cavalier to suggest it's the biggest 668 00:41:21,000 --> 00:41:24,240 Speaker 1: or most important challenge. There are lots of others to consider, 669 00:41:24,520 --> 00:41:27,800 Speaker 1: such as protecting human explorers from the dangers of cosmic radiation. 670 00:41:28,200 --> 00:41:31,520 Speaker 1: Plus there's that whole thing that space is always trying 671 00:41:31,520 --> 00:41:33,840 Speaker 1: to kill you. It's hard to get around that. But 672 00:41:34,000 --> 00:41:37,080 Speaker 1: we're making some great progress and I'm excited to see 673 00:41:37,120 --> 00:41:40,040 Speaker 1: where this goes from here. I doubt I'll ever get 674 00:41:40,080 --> 00:41:43,879 Speaker 1: a chance to venture into space, but it's still inspiring 675 00:41:43,920 --> 00:41:48,000 Speaker 1: to think that future generations might have that option. Of course, 676 00:41:48,160 --> 00:41:50,440 Speaker 1: we'll need to make sure we're making the right choices 677 00:41:50,600 --> 00:41:54,960 Speaker 1: here on Earth right now to make that a future possibility. 678 00:41:55,040 --> 00:41:57,480 Speaker 1: But you guys listen to tech stuff, so you're already 679 00:41:57,480 --> 00:42:00,880 Speaker 1: on the right path for that kind of thing, right anyway, 680 00:42:01,080 --> 00:42:04,200 Speaker 1: that wraps up this discussion of o Cyrus Rex and 681 00:42:04,239 --> 00:42:08,319 Speaker 1: the Mini B system and asteroid mining. I'm sure I'll 682 00:42:08,320 --> 00:42:12,799 Speaker 1: do another episode about how to handle potentially hazardous asteroids. 683 00:42:12,800 --> 00:42:15,280 Speaker 1: I did an episode about that in the past as well. 684 00:42:15,320 --> 00:42:19,359 Speaker 1: But you know, there are always developments that add to 685 00:42:19,400 --> 00:42:25,560 Speaker 1: our understanding. Certain tactics become more likely, others become more unlikely. 686 00:42:25,800 --> 00:42:28,520 Speaker 1: So I'll do a follow up episode at some point 687 00:42:28,880 --> 00:42:31,239 Speaker 1: in the meantime. If any of you have any suggestions 688 00:42:31,280 --> 00:42:33,480 Speaker 1: for future episodes, you can send me an email the 689 00:42:33,480 --> 00:42:36,960 Speaker 1: addresses tech stuff at how stuff works dot com or 690 00:42:37,200 --> 00:42:41,359 Speaker 1: pop and buy our website that's tech stuff podcast dot com. 691 00:42:41,760 --> 00:42:44,080 Speaker 1: You're going to find an archive of all of our 692 00:42:44,120 --> 00:42:48,759 Speaker 1: past episodes there, including the original asteroid mining episode. We 693 00:42:48,800 --> 00:42:51,879 Speaker 1: recorded back in two thousand and twelve, as well as 694 00:42:51,960 --> 00:42:56,040 Speaker 1: links to our social media presence and to our online store, 695 00:42:56,080 --> 00:42:58,760 Speaker 1: where every purchase you make goes to help the show 696 00:42:58,840 --> 00:43:01,440 Speaker 1: and we greatly appreciate it, and I'll talk to you 697 00:43:01,480 --> 00:43:10,200 Speaker 1: again really soon. Yeah. Tech Stuff is a production of 698 00:43:10,239 --> 00:43:13,319 Speaker 1: I Heart Radio's How Stuff Works. For more podcasts from 699 00:43:13,320 --> 00:43:17,080 Speaker 1: my heart Radio, visit the I heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, 700 00:43:17,200 --> 00:43:19,200 Speaker 1: or wherever you listen to your favorite shows.