Teledyne Optech Lidar Launched in OSIRIS-REx Asteroid Mission

摘要

The OSIRIS-REx Laser Altimeter (OLA) was launched successfully from Cape Canaveral, USA, on Thursday 8 September. OLA was designed by scientists and engineers from Teledyne Optech and built by MacDonald, Dettwiler and Associates (MDA). It had been installed and tested aboard the OSIRIS-REx (Origins-Spectral Interpretation-Resource Identification-Security-Regolith Explorer) spacecraft. OSIRIS-Rex will reach the asteroid Bennu by 2018. Upon reaching Bennu, OLA will scan the surface to create a high-resolution 3D map of the entire asteroid, which will help scientists understand its morphology and select the best spot for OSIRIS-REx to collect a sample of its surface material. This sample will be collected in 2020 and returned to Earth in 2023. Because Bennu is a carbonaceous asteroid that has likely changed very little since the birth of the solar system, scientists hope that this mission will shed light on how the solar system developed.