Be the first to see a sample of the Bennu asteroid on display at the UA Alfie Norville Gem and Mineral Museum!
When
Where
Be the first to see a sample of the Bennu asteroid on display at the Alfie Norville Gem and Mineral Museum! The sample, collected by the OSIRIS-REx mission, provides insight into the early formation of our solar system.
At 4:30pm Enter the museum to enjoy the new display and the museum galleries.
Followed by a special presentation at 5:30pm by Dante Lauretta, principal investigator of the OSIRIS-REx mission, where he’ll preview stories from his upcoming book The Asteroid Hunter.
Led by researchers in the University of Arizona Lunar and Planetary Laboratory, OSIRIS-REx is the first U.S. mission to collect a sample from an asteroid and return it to Earth for study. The surface material will be the largest sample collected from space since the Apollo moon landings in the 1960s and 70s and will help ensure that the University of Arizona remains at the forefront of planetary exploration.
About the Speaker:
Dante Lauretta is the Director of the Arizona Astrobiology Center, principal investigator of the OSIRIS-REx asteroid sample return mission and a Regents Professor of Planetary Science at the University of Arizona Lunar and Planetary Laboratory. His research interests focus on the chemistry and mineralogy of asteroids and comets, and he is an expert on the analysis of extraterrestrial materials, including asteroid samples, meteorites and comet particles.
Lauretta is the co-author of Bennu 3-D: Anatomy of an Asteroid which tells the story of the OSIRIS-REx mission alongside detailed descriptions and images of the asteroid which can be viewed in three dimensions. His upcoming memoir The Asteroid Hunter: A Scientist’s Journey to the Dawn of our Solar System will be available on March 19, 2024.
Museum will be open for general admission from 10am-4pm prior to this event. The museum will be closed to the public from 4-4:30pm.
Event Schedule:
4:30pm Museum galleries open for viewing, see the sample on display!
5:30-6:10pm Dante Lauretta presents in Turquoise Room
6:10-6:40pm Question and Answer in Turquoise with Dante Lauretta