OSIRIS-REx
The Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification, Security, Regolith Explorer (OSIRIS-REx) is a planned NASA asteroid study and sample return mission. It is a planetary science mission, the third selected in the New Frontiers Program, after Juno and New Horizons. The launch is planned in 2016 and will study and return a sample of asteroid 101955 Bennu (formerly designated 1999 RQ36), a carbonaceous asteroid, to Earth in 2023 for detailed analysis. Material returned is expected to enable scientists to learn more about the time before the formation and evolution of the Solar System, initial stages of planet formation, and the source of organic compounds which led to the formation of life.
The cost of the mission will be approximately USD $800 million not including the launch vehicle, which is about $183.5 million. Lockheed Martin has completed assembly of the spacecraft and it is now undergoing environmental testing. The Principal Investigator is Dante Lauretta from the University of Arizona.
