Comments on: OSIRIS-REx on its way back to Earth https://behindtheblack.com/behind-the-black/points-of-information/osiris-rex-on-its-way-back-to-earth/ Wed, 12 May 2021 17:27:03 +0000 hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.9.4 By: markedup2 https://behindtheblack.com/behind-the-black/points-of-information/osiris-rex-on-its-way-back-to-earth/#comment-1130338 Wed, 12 May 2021 17:27:03 +0000 https://behindtheblack.com/?p=75636#comment-1130338 As an orbital mechanic, I make a good plumber, but what does it do in the meantime? It’s not as if it will just sit somewhere waiting for a target to appear.

The goal of the return maneuver is to get the spacecraft within about 6,000 miles of Earth
Presumably, the sample capsule can then perform whatever maneuver is needed to drop itself into the atmosphere for braking.

But won’t the spacecraft get a gravity slingshot of some sort that will fling it off into wherever? I can see the goal of making that “wherever” into something useful, but I think the options would be SEVERELY limited.

I just looked it up: Luna(*) is ~240,000 miles from Earth, so 6,000 miles is very close – significantly under geosync orbit even- that slingshot effect is going to be dramatic.

(*) I don’t like “the moon” because there are so many moons. Maybe “the Moon” as a compromise?

]]> By: Jeff Wright https://behindtheblack.com/behind-the-black/points-of-information/osiris-rex-on-its-way-back-to-earth/#comment-1130284 Wed, 12 May 2021 03:40:41 +0000 https://behindtheblack.com/?p=75636#comment-1130284 This may be the most important mission ever-getting a glimpse of this threat. If possible…maybe do a hard burn in passing so as to be able to image as much surface area so as to do a 3D reconstruction-atlas. Too fast to orbit this body-but if it rotates-you might see more sides.

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