--- title: "Asteroid’s Surface Like a “Plastic Ball Pit,” Scientists Find" description: "When OSIRIS-REx tried to touch down on Bennu, it sank into the asteroid like quicksand, causing a dazzling explosion of celestial matter in the process." date: "2022-07-08" modified: "2022-07-10" authors: - name: "Maggie Harrison Dupré" job_title: "Senior Staff Writer" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/mharrison" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/asteroids-surface-plastic-ball-pit" categories: - "Off-World" - "Space" tags: - "asteroids" - "NASA" - "osiris-rex" - "the digest" --- # Asteroid’s Surface Like a “Plastic Ball Pit,” Scientists Find ![]() *\Image: NASA\* ## Big Surprise NASA's [OSIRIS-REx spacecraft's original mission]() was to fly to the asteroid Bennu, where it was mean to briefly land on the body's presumably rocky surface, collect a small sample, and head back home. But while most of the mission miraculously went as planned — there was one major surprise along the way. When OSIRIS-REx tried to touch down on Bennu back in 2020, it astonishingly sank into the asteroid's quicksand-like surface — likened to a children's "plastic ball pit" in a new [NASA update]() — triggering a [dazzling explosion of celestial matter](). Now, the mission's researchers finally think they know why, as detailed in a [pair]() of [new papers]() published this week. "We expected the surface to be pretty rigid, kind of like if you touch down on a gravel pile: a little bit of dust flying away and a few particles jumping up," Dante Lauretta, lead author of one of the studies and principal investigator of the OSIRIS-RE mission, [told *Space.com*](). "But as we were bringing back the images after the event, we were stunned." "There clearly was no resistance whatsoever," she added. "The surface was soft and flowed away like a fluid." https://twitter.com/NASA360/status/1545394540843900928?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1545397321847955467%7Ctwgr%5E%7Ctwcon%5Es3_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwordpress.futurism.com%2Fwp%2Fwp-admin%2Fpost-new.php ## Space Fluff The outcome was so surprising, in fact, that the researchers sent the craft back to Bennu six months later. The imagery gathered on the second mission showed that OSIRIS-REx had [left a 65-foot-wide impact crater](), dubbed "Nightingale," in its wake. According [to a NASA statement](), the researchers believe that the secret to Bennu's unexpected fluff is in its mass. The particles that form the asteroid's surface are both loosely packed and lightly bound, meaning that while it looks solid, there's actually a lot of empty space. As a result, NASA says that stepping onto the asteroid would apparently feel like "stepping into a pit of plastic balls." Yes, like the ones at your local Chuck E. Cheese. The research is exciting, although frankly, it's a bit nerve-wracking as well. Since Bennu is held together by so little force, an impact with Earth would likely cause the asteroid to shatter within our Pale Blue Dot's atmosphere, according to the researchers — a very different kind of hazard compared to a collision with a hard celestial body. *Updated error in how Bennu was referred to.* **READ MORE:** *[Dramatic sampling shows asteroid Bennu is nothing like scientists expected]()* \[*Space.org*\] **More on NASA advancements:** [*Here's What to Expect From James Webb's First Images*]() ## Author At Futurism, I've reported extensively on the rise of AI as a cultural and business force shaping the media industry, and more broadly how those dynamics are changing how we all consume and share information and relate to one another. I'm also fascinated by public health policy and ethics, the role of emerging tech in politics and governance — and the powerful people and forces at those intersections — climate change, and the environment. My investigation on Sports Illustrated's use of AI-generated authors with fictional biographies won a 2024 Mirror Award for "Best Story on Media Coverage of Artificial Intelligence in Journalism and the Media" from Syracuse University's SI Newhouse School, I contributed to Niemen Lab's 2025 Predictions for Journalism series, and I've discussed my work for Futurism during appearances on NPR, CNN, the BBC, the CBC, and more. I grew up in rural Pennsylvania and attended the University of Massachusetts Amherst, where I played Division I field hockey for the Minutewomen as a midfielder. Since then, I've lived in New Orleans, Louisiana and Manhattan, New York. I spend my free time running, reading, perusing archival fashion, and searching for the world’s best negroni. I also have a debonair tuxedo cat, Westley, who's named after "The Princess Bride." ### Author social links [Bluesky]()