How Big is the Asteroid Bennu?

We are going to an Asteroid?

Sending the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft to an asteroid is very exciting! Are you curious about the asteroid? It is named Bennu. Check out the image below comparing the size of Bennu to a couple of famous buildings. Bennu is approximately 500 meters tall--that's taller than both the Empire State Building (in New York City, USA) and the Eiffel Tower (in Paris, France)!

#ToBennuAndBack

Learn more about the OSIRIS-REx mission at: 

http://www.asteroidmission.org/

Get involved! Follow the mission on social media:

Twitter: @OSIRISREx
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/OSIRISREx/

#ToBennuAndBack

Anthropologist's Note: The idea of visiting an asteroid is pretty exciting just by itself, but this event has implications for humans far beyond just providing new scientific information about asteroids. The material on the asteroid will be the same material that the early Solar System was made of. This will give scientists important information about how life evolved on Earth, and even provide clues about the possibility of life in other places in the solar system. The infomation obtained from Bennu on this highly controversial topic will have many implications for people around the world. In addition, OSIRIS-REx will be able to obtain detailed information on Bennu, which has a relatively high probability of hitting the Earth. This information will allow scientists to develop better asteroid impact mitigation plans, helping to protect all forms of life on our planet.