OSIRIS-REx launch preparations. Atlas V rocket (operated by United Launch Alliance) being rolled out with the Vertical Integration Facility (VIF) to P
OSIRIS-REx launch preparations. Atlas V rocket (operated by United Launch Alliance) being rolled out with the Vertical Integration Facility (VIF) to Pad 41 for the upcoming launch of the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft from Cape Canaveral Air Force Station in Florida, USA. NASA's OSIRIS-REx (Origins Spectral Interpretation Resource Identification Security Regolith Explorer) is a sample-return mission scheduled for launch on 8 September 2016. It will obtain samples from asteroid 101955 Bennu in 2018 for return to Earth in 2023. The asteroid, Bennu, may hold clues to the origin of the solar system and the source of water and organic molecules found on Earth. Photographed on 7 September 2016.
Size: 4000px × 2667px
Photo credit: © NASA/Kim Shiflett/United Launch Alliance/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
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