NASA SAMPLE FROM ASTEROID BENNU LEAKING INTO SPACE

The historic collection of a sample from the near-Earth asteroid Bennu by NASA's OSIRIS-REx spacecraft was almost too successful but some of the sample is leaking into space, according to Dante Lauretta, OSIRIS-REx principal investigator at the University of Arizona in Tucson during a NASA press conference, Ashley Strickland reported for CNN.

"The big concern now is that particles are escaping because we're almost a victim of our own success," he said. "Large particles left the flap open. Particles are diffusing out into space. They aren't moving fast, but nonetheless, it's valuable scientific material."

The spacecraft’s sample head is full of rocks and dust collected from the surface of the asteroid Bennu. But some of the particles are slowly escaping through small gaps. The spacecraft's sample head is full of rocks and dust collected from the surface of the asteroid Bennu. But some of the particles are slowly escaping through small gaps. The mission team analyzed images Thursday taken of the collector head of the spacecraft that showed that a substantial sample was collected -- but there is so much material in the head that the flap designed to keep the sample inside is jammed.

This is allowing particles to escape into space. The mission team is changing the course of the events planned for the spacecraft this weekend and planning to stow the sample as quickly as possible so little material is lost. The researchers estimated that it's continually losing between 5 to 10 grams of material. This flaky material floats in what resembles a cloud of particles around the head. But the team isn't sure of the exact loss rate because it's not steady. The mission was required to collect at least 2 ounces, or 60 grams, of the asteroid's surface material. Based on the images they analyzed, the researchers are confident that the collector head on the end of the spacecraft's robotic arm actually captured 400 grams of material. And that's only what's visible to them through the perspective of the camera.