Questions tagged [sample-return]
Mission to some extraterrestrial object which results in return of materials to Earth for further examination.
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What precautions are planned to prevent samples returned from Mars crashing and releasing organisms into Earth's environment?
Bias disclaimer: I think that returning samples from Mars to Earth at a point in time where we also suspect there is a chance that there is microbial life on Mars is ill-advised and arrogant. We are ...
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Why NASA's sudden renewed (apparently) interest in Wax hybrid engines? Which property is so attractive now?
update:
This answer links to Larry Russell Kellogg which links to NASA Tests Environmentally Friendly Rocket Fuel where images of Test firing of new Paraffin-Based Fuel at NASA Ames Research Center 1/...
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Perseverance individual sample collection post-mission; what stops them from blowing away or getting covered and hidden by dust?
I have been seeing videos that the plan after Perseverance is done collecting samples to distribute them in 'strategic' locations around Mars for another rover to drive around and pick up later. Why ...
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Explanation of single-burn trajectories from Lunar surface to Earth surface
I learned of the fine book Soviet Robots in the Solar System from this excellent answer. One chapter in it describes how the Soviets had extreme mass limitations on their lunar sample return vehicle ...
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If there is actual ice on the moon, why hasn't it sublimated?
The Ars Technica article NASA seeks industry help with lunar landings, potentially sample return discusses the potential value of ice on the moon as a source for fuel in future space missions.
Ice ...
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Thrown-together $200 million mission to asteroid 2020 SO; check out or nudge to longer-lasting mini-moon orbit
This tweet says in part:
Earth's potential new minimoon, 2020 SO may be the Surveyor 2 Centaur rocket body, launched in September 1966. Integrating backwards shows 2020 SO2 to also be orbiting Earth ...
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What forms of water ice have been observed and verified in the solar system?
The cool plot in this answer (from here) got me thinking about the more than sixteen distinct forms of ice, and how many of them have been actually seen to occur naturally in the solar system.
There ...
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Actual mass of Hayabusa samples in 2010?
Whatever I read I find Hayavusa brought some microscopic particles.
But what was the mass of the sample?
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Why does the Perseverance Rover do sample caching?
As glad as I am that Perseverance's landing was successful, I'm a bit confused as to why there appears to be so little science equipment aboard the rover (by volume) and why the mission seems to be ...
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Why should the Mars 2020 rover drop drilled cores along its route to be picked up later?
The Mars 2020 rover will drill up real cores decimeter or so deep, in order for them to be returned to Earth by a follow up mission. I hear NASA people now seriously working on having that rover drop ...
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How much total lunar mass remains viable for analysis here on Earth?
I know that samples of lunar regolith were taken on many missions to and from the moon, but I also know that these rocks aren't common and are being used for analysis purposes. According to this NASA ...
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How will Bennu's volatile compounds stay cool and unmodified by the heat of re-entry (OSIRIS-REx)?
Watching the video in this NYTimes article NASA Aims at an Asteroid Holding Clues to the Solar System’s Roots I realized for the first time how the samples actually make it back to Earth.
The ...
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Does NASA still plan for the Mars Ascent Vehicle to burn wax from the surface to orbit?
The NASA news item From Pedicures to the Peregrine Rocket, Paraffin Wax Proves Its Worth says:
The paraffin-based fuel also works under challenging environmental conditions, like the very low ...
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Could the SS520 be used to return a payload from Mars to Earth?
The Japanese SS520-5 nanosat launcher has a payload of 5kg or so to LEO on an all solid fuel rocket with a total mass of about 2.6 tons. To reach LEO its delta-V totalled over all three stages must be ...
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Are there (detailed) images or diagrams of the rotating drill carousel and the small robotic arm which are housed in the belly of Perseverance?
The sample handling page at the Mars 2020 mission site shows us the rover with at its front a circle that probably contains the rotating drill carousel ?
However it states that the belly of the rover ...
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