[MtnClimber]

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[MtnClimber]

[Pontiac]

Leading ejection hypotheses include impacts by Sun-orbiting meteoroids, sudden thermal fractures of internal structures, and the sudden release of a water vapor jet.

My guess is Reptilian miners blasting for Unobtainium.

[Bullish]

Most interesting gravel I’ve ever seen... I guess.

[SunkenCiv]

Why does asteroid Bennu eject gravel into space? No one is sure. The discovery, occurring during several episodes by NASA's visiting OSIRIS-REx spacecraft, was unexpected. Leading ejection hypotheses include impacts by Sun-orbiting meteoroids, sudden thermal fractures of internal structures, and the sudden release of a water vapor jet. The featured two-image composite shows an ejection event that occurred in early 2019, with sun-reflecting ejecta seen on the right. Data and simulations show that large gravel typically falls right back to the rotating 500-meter asteroid, while smaller rocks skip around the surface, and the smallest rocks completely escape the low gravity of the Earth approaching, diamond-shaped asteroid.

Thanks MtnClimber.

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[JimRed]

How do they determine that the ejecta is gravel, as opposed to ice chunks?