Johnson Space Center begins study on asteroid sample that could reveal life origins on Earth

HOUSTON, Texas (KTRK) -- Scientists at the Johnson Space Center in Houston now have their hands on the first asteroid sample ever obtained by the United States. The material could reveal unprecedented answers about how our solar system was formed, and how organic lifeforms on Earth began.

The sample was delivered by a C-17 military aircraft to Johnson Space Center on Monday. It's about 8 and a half ounces of rock and soil from the asteroid Bennu. The seven-year mission began in 2016, with the NASA spacecraft Osirus-REX traveling a total of 3.86 billion miles before dropping the canister in Utah on Sunday from 63,000 miles above the earth's surface.

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"It brought something extraordinary, the largest asteroid sample ever received on Earth," said NASA administrator Bill Nelson. "This mission proves that NASA does big things, things that inspire us, things that unite us. It wasn't mission impossible. It was the impossible that became possible."

NASA scientists say Bennu is similar in age and type to the asteroids believed to have crashed into Earth some 4.5 billion years ago when our planet and the sun were forming, delivering elements like water to our ecosystem. It's thought that study of this material could lead to unprecedented information about the origins of our solar system.

"Scientists believe that the asteroid Bennu is representative of the solar system's own oldest materials forged in large dying stars and supernova explosions," said Lori Glaze, director of NASA's Scientific Planetary Division after the cannister landed on U.S. soil on Sunday. "And for this reason, NASA is investing in these missions devoted to small bodies to increase our understanding of how our solar system formed and how it evolved."

Scientists at Johnson Space Center will analyze the material for a two-year period. NASA will also send parts of the sample to laboratories around the globe. This study is also critical because it's believed Bennu itself is on a collision course with Earth. Learning about what it's made of and how it orbits could be critical in deflecting it.

NASA plans to announce its first findings in a press conference from Johnson Space Center on October 11. About 70% of the asteroid sample will be stored away, so that future generations with even better technology can learn even more than what's now possible.

"These samples that were brought back are going to be a scientific treasure for years and years to come," Glaze said.