Dr. Lauretta also said that the site’s scientific value was high because of the northern latitude. Colder temperatures there mean more of the material the spacecraft collects could be preserved from when the asteroid first formed.

Bennu is one of a class of near Earth asteroids known as carbonaceous, because they are rich in carbon, organic material like hydrated minerals. It is thought to be one of the oldest rocks formed during the earliest days of the solar system, some four billion years ago. There is a small chance Bennu could collide with Earth, but not until the 22nd century should that occur. (The asteroid is too small to extinguish most life on Earth, but it would be catastrophic where it struck.)

Just over a year ago, after a journey of 1.2 billion miles, Osiris-Rex arrived at Bennu and quickly got to work examining the diamond shaped asteroid. As it sped closer, the team was hoping the surface would reveal large swaths of smooth terrain from which to collect a sample.

However, in true space exploration fashion nothing went as planned.

It turned out Bennu was covered in massive boulders stories high as well as other large rocks that posed a continuous challenge for site selection.