Curtin University researchers are among a global team of scientists who are discovering how our solar system came to be, by uncovering the secrets hidden within a 4.5-billion-year-old asteroid.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
In September last year, after a seven-year journey NASA\u2019s billion-dollar OSIRIS-REx mission successfully returned samples from the asteroid Bennu, with specimens sent to research laboratories across the world including Curtin.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
A new study <\/a>published in Meteoritics and Planetary Science reveals the first findings from the samples \u2014 and there were some surprises for the team.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The samples consisted of mostly dark particles ranging from dust-sized to approximately 3.5 cm long, however there are some lighter particles scattered throughout, some with stones also having brighter material forming veins and crusts.<\/p>\n\n\n\n OSIRIS-REx Sample Analysis Team member Associate Professor Nick Timms<\/a> from Curtin\u2019s School of Earth and Planetary Sciences<\/a> said unlike meteorites which have fallen to Earth, the material collected from Bennu have been kept in pristine condition and haven\u2019t been contaminated by Earth\u2019s atmosphere or biosphere.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cAnalyses show Bennu is among the most chemically primitive materials known, similar in composition to the visible surface of the sun,\u201d Associate Professor Timms said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThis indicates Bennu has undergone different processes to the planets, and these processes changed the abundance of particular elements relative to the sun.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Analysis of the samples confirmed the presence of various components previously thought to be present, such as hydrated phyllosilicates (a type of mineral which forms in the presence of water) and carbon-rich material.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThis means asteroids such as this may have played a key role in delivering water and the building blocks of life to Earth,\u201d Associate Professor Timms said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The samples also contained several unexpected components.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWe were surprised to find magnesium-sodium phosphates, which further suggests Bennu experienced chemical environments which possibly involved water,” Associate Professor Timms said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cWe also found other trace minerals, which offer clues as to the processes which have happened on Bennu over billions of years, such as temperature and pressure conditions.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThese trace minerals help paint a picture of Bennu\u2019s evolution and also offer insights into the early solar system and how the different planetary bodies in the solar system were created.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Associate Professor Timms said there will be many more discoveries made from the Bennu samples, which will have a wide range of implications for understanding the early solar system.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThe sample has presolar grains created before our solar system existed, which can provide a detailed biography of the lives of ancient stars,\u201d Associate Professor Timms said.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cThere are also very practical implications to understanding the composition of asteroids, from identifying potential mining opportunities to knowing how to best protect ourselves should an asteroid be on a collision course with Earth.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n The full Curtin team includes:<\/em><\/p>\n\n\n\n\n