rebecca morelle, bbc news, utah.lanetary scientist at arizona state university. she also serves as the principal scientist for the mars sample return programme. thank you forjoining us. you will know what these individuals are doing, can you explain a little about this process that they are doing right now.— about this process that they are doing right now. yes, this is going to be a very. _ doing right now. yes, this is going to be a very. very _ doing right now. yes, this is going to be a very, very careful - doing right now. yes, this is going to be a very, very careful processl to be a very, very careful process of documenting the sample return capsule. they will be going to take their time before they open it up, they want to make sure that the exterior is completely documented. that they remove any of the utah desert that may be attached to the capsule. and of course, they are taking some closer pictures, images of the capital itself before they start to open it. in of the capital itself before they start to op

rebecca morelle, bbc news, utah.kidney transplant that means she does not have to take long term drugs to stop her rejecting the organ. aditi shankar received both stem cells and a kidney transplant from her mother which meant her body accepted the new organ. 0ur medical editor fergus walsh has her story. aditi's health has been transformed, thanks to her mum and a team at great 0rmond street hospital in london. she has an extremely rare genetic condition which had weakened her immune system and meant her kidneys were failing. doctors came up with a radical new approach, which involved not one but two transplants. the medical team began by removing stem cells from aditi's mum. these were used for a bone marrow transplant which rebuilt and re—programmed aditi's immune system. six months later, aditi had a kidney transplant, again donated by her mother, and her reprogrammed immune system accepted the organ as her own. her immune deficiency had to be corrected by having mum's bone marrow first, and because aditi was abl

here's our science editor, rebecca morelle. it has felt like the world is on fire. flames racing across swathes of land, destroying homes and lives. the images are unforgettable. but how bad has this wildfire season been? looking at the total area affected by fire so far, this has not been an unusual year, although we are only part way through it. but there are some exceptions. in europe, greece has seen some extreme fires, one the largest ever recorded in europe. but in countries like portugal and romania, the area burned has been below average. over in canada, huge fires have been raging for months, their worst wildfire season on record. but in the us, it has been quiet. in california, a wet winter and cool spring has lowered the fire risk. in hawaii, though, the fire was small but its impact was enormous. the death toll is still rising, making 2023 the deadliest year for wildfires this century. hawaii kind of shows that you can have a really intense fires as well hawaii kind of shows that you can have really intense fires as

rebecca morelle, bbc news.are plans for a permanent memorial. a specially formed committee will consult the public and the royal family, in choosing an appropriate tribute, to be unveiled in 2026. our royal correspondent, daniela relph, has more. a nice statue of her with a water feature around it, where people could throw money which could be gathered to support the charities that the queen supported when she was alive. but nothing too ostentatious and in—your—face. and it's striking that balance in terms of how you immortalise her. a traditional park with horses, where people can learn - to ride horses, i new horse riders coming in, butjust keep it very traditional. - and it doesn't get much more traditional than the queen victoria memorial, dominating the view outside buckingham palace, an imposing tribute to a monarch. queen victoria got this huge memorial in a prime location, but queen elizabeth ii reigned for longer, arguably during more turbulent times. so does she need something bigger, better orjust di

rebecca morelle, bbc news, utah. stay with us here on bbc news for world business report.ay looks like it could bring us some stormy conditions. but what we have at the moment are a few showers getting in across parts of wales, northern england, northern ireland, but the bulk of them will be across scotland where they could be heavy and thundery. still gusty winds across the north and also the west, gusting in excess of 40mph. but a lot of dry weather, a fair bit of sunshine, with highs up to 23 degrees. now, through this evening and overnight we hang on to a lot of clear skies at first, but then a system coming up from the south will introduce some humid conditions and some showers across wales, south—west england, the midlands and southern counties. and at the same time, we also have a weather front bringing rain in across northern ireland and the outer hebrides. now, both of these fronts through the course of tomorrow are going to push north—eastwards and you can see from the isobars it�*s going to be another breezy day in the south, but windy in the north. so the showe

rebecca morelle, bbc news.he uk more than 100 schools have been forced to close buildings because of crumbling concrete. the uk's chancellor, jeremy hunt, says the government will "spend what it takes," to secure school buildings that are falling into disrepair. our home editor, mark easton, has the latest. after two days of terrible headlines about crumbling schools at risk of collapse... good morning, sir. good morning. ..it was the chancellor jeremy hunt who took to the airwaves to try and reassure the public that the government had matters under control. welcome back to the studio, chancellor. appearing on the laura kuenssberg program, mr hunt said ministers would do whatever was necessary to keep schoolchildren safe. we will spend what it takes to sort out this problem as quickly as possible. so do you commit to covering whatever costs are required to remove all of this dangerous concrete from schools around the country? we will spend what it takes to make sure that children can go to school safely, yes. t

rebecca morelle, bbc news. let's find out more with keith cowing, editor of spaceref.com.as quite excited in the desert in utah, how are you feeling about what is going to happen in utah, sunday morning? just as excited but i'm not sure she gave you a wonderful overview of what is about to happen and what everybody is excited about.— happen and what everybody is excited about. what a scientist exectin: excited about. what a scientist expecting to — excited about. what a scientist expecting to happen _ excited about. what a scientist expecting to happen and - excited about. what a scientist| expecting to happen and hoping to happen on sunday morning? bennu is of a particular class, it means that has organic chemicals, things we eat that made us up, that led to the origin of life on earth, it is a very old piece of rock, here is my scale model of it it is a tangerine, that is roughly the shape. it was made of parts from a bigger thing that got blown apart billions of years ago there is evidence some of the rock still have water on them and you need a big well to do that. you

as our science editor, rebecca morelle, reports. capsule that's travelled billions of miles through space — the conclusion of a seven—year mission called osiris—rex. the first glimpse — a tiny dot high up in the atmosphere, as it descends towards the utah desert. then a view of its parachute slowing the craft. finally, it's down. inside is the most precious sample — fragments of an asteroid called bennu that could reveal the secrets of our solar system. the scientists think there's about 250g of dust and rock, and every grain is precious. some of our instruments literally look at the atoms that make up the crystals inside these rocks, and when you're working at that scale, a single stone is an infinite landscape to explore. we'll be working on these materials for decades and decades into the future. all of this effort is to solve the mystery of what asteroid bennu is made of. this is vital, because bennu tops the list of nasa's most hazardous space rocks, so studying its make—up could help us to stop it if we ever need to. but it co

rebecca morelle, bbc news, utah. speak now to one of the scientists who'll be researching this space dust. it has been an exciting day. it has been an emotional day and the entire team is thrilled with how everything went. tell us a little _ with how everything went. tell us a little more _ with how everything went. tell us a little more about what the manoeuvres were like. because it was quite a complex procedure, i believe, to bring that down safely?— procedure, i believe, to bring that down safely? that's right. no, it started _ that down safely? that's right. no, it started really _ that down safely? that's right. no, it started really early - no, it started really early this morning so the navigation team was up around to o'clock in the morning doing final checks and making sure everything was safe for the capital to be released. my alarm went off at about 330 this morning in the first thing i did was check my e—mail and there was a message saying we were good to go and everything was going smoothly. so there wa

here's our science editor rebecca morelle.e. flames racing across swathes of land, destroying homes and lives. the images are unforgettable. but how bad has this wildfire season been? looking at the total area affected by fire so far, this has not been an unusual year, although we are only partway through it. but there are some exceptions. in europe, greece has seen some extreme fires, one the largest ever recorded in europe. but in countries like portugal and romania, the area burned has been below average. over in canada, huge fires have been raging for months, their worst wildfire season on record. but in the us, it has been quiet. in california, a wet winter and cool spring has lowered the fire risk. in hawaii, though, the fire was small but its impact was enormous. the death toll is still rising, making 2023 the deadliest year for wildfires this century. hawaii kind of shows that you can have a really intense fires as well and it is the intensity of the fires as well, rather than the size, but how hot it was, how fast it

rebecca morelle, bbc news, utah.sion over her life preserving treatment say they were brutally silenced by the courts. the 19—year—old can now be named after legal restrictions were lifted. the patient had mitochondrial disease and died after a cardiac arrest before the eu court of protection could hear her case. she needed end—of—life care rather than on curbing treatment. her family say they were deeply disturbed by how they were treated by the hospital trust and the courts. ~ . , ., courts. we have been gagged, silenced and _ courts. we have been gagged, silenced and most _ courts. we have been gagged, silenced and most importantly| silenced and most importantly prevented from accessing specialist treatment abroad. had she been allowed to seek treatment six months ago, it might well be that she would still be with us and recovering. she said she wanted to died trying to live. detectives investigating the death of ten—year—old sara sharif in woking last month have released new pictures of her. they're hoping the im

rebecca morelle, bbc news, utah. watch this space for more on that one.ve from washington. coming up, i bbc you need is a special look at the war on ukraine. thanks for watching. take care. hello. it's the autumn equinox on saturday morning so the first day of autumn, officially. how about the weather? it's looking a little mixed this weekend and quite an interesting headline there. the tail end of a hurricane is expected to bring us some warm weather to some parts of the country, but also a dose of wind and rain. and here it is, hurricane nigel soon to become an ex hurricane, also being absorbed by the weather systems in the mid—latitudes and all of that is heading our way. and also a south south—westerly wind ahead of it will develop, ahead of this large area of low pressure and that means somewhat warmer weather streaming in from the south. so it's a tale of two halves, quite literally. so the forecast sent through the early morning shows clear skies across most of the uk. having said that, it is going to be quite chilly despite this remnant storm head

rebecca morelle, bbc news.gest hot air balloon festival in colorado in the us. around 70 balloons take part in the event flying over the colorado springs landscape. as you can see, the balloons come in all shapes and sizes. the mass liftoff takes place each morning and evening over the labor day holiday weekend in the us. the organisers say it's one of only two balloon events in the world that are free. stay with us here on bbc news. hello there. we've got a september heatwave building over the next few days with lots of dry weather, lots of sunshine, and rising temperatures. we're looking at probably the hottest days wednesday, thursday, when we could see temperatures reach the low 30s. now, most of us had sunshine today. we've seen temperatures go past 26 degrees in a few areas. the one place that missed out on the sunshine and warm weather, the far north of scotland, where we had a bit of cloud and rain. and after a locally misty start to the day, we saw that sunshine really coming through across the board.

rebecca morelle, bbc news.he burning man arts and culture festival in nevada. it follows torrential rains which have trapped tens of thousands of people at the festival's desert site. david willis is there. # i wanna know, have you ever seen the rain?# they've seen it here — what is thought to be the longest, heaviest rainfall since this festival was launched 37 years ago. the day before people were due to start heading home, the dusty desert sand was transformed into thick clay, prompting organisers to lock the gates to anyone seeking to enter or leave. and they will remain closed until the ground hardens, allowing the tens of thousands of vehicles to leave through narrow desert roads without getting bogged down in the mud. when that happens depends on the weather, of course, and there are further thunderstorms forecast. the advice to those stranded in the ankle—deep mud is conserve food, fuel and water supplies because it is unclear when they'll be leaving. this is hard. i'm kind of sad. when are we getting o

rebecca morelle, bbc news, utah. live now to, jay tate, director of the spaceguard centre.mpling is due to start today, i believe. from our oint due to start today, i believe. from our point of _ due to start today, i believe. from our point of view, _ due to start today, i believe. from our point of view, because - due to start today, i believe. from our point of view, because we - due to start today, i believe. fr'rrrn our point of view, because we deal with the impact hazard from asteroids and comets, we would really like to know what this thing is made of and how it is put together, is bennu solid or a flying rubble pile and what is the composition of the material we have brought back? find composition of the material we have brought back?— brought back? and if it is a flying rubble ile brought back? and if it is a flying rubble pile it _ brought back? and if it is a flying rubble pile it is _ brought back? and if it is a flying rubble pile it is one _ brought back? and if it is a flying rubble pile it is one that - brought back? and if it is a flying rubble pile it is o

rebecca morelle, bbc news, utah.have seen showery outbreaks of rain. fairly fragmented, as you can see from the earlier rainfall, but low pressure is still driving the weather story at the moment. plenty of isobars on the trot, so plenty of wet weather to come for the remainder of the afternoon, but not for all of us. central and southern parts of england and wales will continue to see the cloud break up sunshine come through, while a pulse of rain move steadily north by the end of the afternoon, sitting across the scottish borders, northern ireland in particular. but with the sunshine, we could see temperatures topping 20 or 21 celsius. in the evening, another heavy pulse of rain pushing in from the south—west, across wales, into the lake district, and into western scotland. weather warnings in force here. gusty winds accompanying the heaviest rain, on exposed coasts, 50-60 heaviest rain, on exposed coasts, 50—60 mph. some pretty miserable conditions to close out sunday. that frontal system will ease away, though sh

rebecca morelle reports from the us state of utah, where it landed. entered the earth's atmosphere. tracking asset. a first glimpse of the capsule after its epicjourney through space. we have confirmed parachute deployment. applause. high up in the atmosphere, a parachute opens, slowing its descent. touchdown! i repeat, touchdown. it has touched down. a textbook landing in the middle of the utah desert. for the team who have spent decades working on the 0siris—rex mission, it's an emotional moment. so, how did it go? it went absolutely perfectly. absolutely perfect landing. we didn't move, we landed on nice, soft soil. the capsule looks flawless. i cried like a baby in that helicopter when i heard that the parachute has opened and we were coming in for a soft landing. it was an overwhelming moment for me. inside the capsule is the most precious sample — fragments of an asteroid called bennu that could reveal the story of our solar system. the team quickly secures the craft to prevent any contamination and attach it to a 30m line slung beneath a helico

rebecca morelle, bbc news, utah.from rebecca on what the next step will be now that scientists have been reunited with 0siris—rex. such a big moment for nasa... really delighted with what they have back so far. the s in the cleanroom here, kept in a stable environment to try to keep the precious sample of bennu away from dust and grime and dirt of the desert. that is really important. the next stage of the mission involves this here. this big military cargo plane. what is going to happen? you have the capital and inside it is a canister and inside that an asteroid sample. they will remove the outer layer, the capsule layer and fill out a way. the canister will be packaged up and put on board this plane and flown to the johnson board this plane and flown to thejohnson space centre in houston, texas. there scientists are eagerly awaiting for the really exciting bit. 0pening it up to see exactly what is inside. now, properly collecting every grain is going to take some time, but the signs will start really quickly actua

rebecca morelle, bbc news, utah.dhwa — planetary scientist at arizona state university. she also serves as the principal scientist for the mars sample return programme. i asked her about the process from here. it's going to be a very, very careful process of documenting the sample return capsule. they're going to be taking their time before they open it up. they want to make sure that the exterior is completely documented, that they remove any any of the utah dirt that might be attached to the capsule. and then, of course, they're taking some close up pictures, some images of the capsule itself before they start to open it. and in terms of dust, i mean, how much dust would something like this, this sort of meteorite carry? yes. so this is actually obviously samples from asteroid bennu and the estimate is that there could be as much as 250 grams or so, perhaps even more of sample from the asteroid bennu inside this capsule, inside of the canister. and that will take a while then to presumably navigate through and to e

rebecca morelle, bbc news, utah. time for a look at the weather. here's stav danaos.etter days of this week, things are set to turn pretty stormy around the middle of the week.

rebecca morelle, bbc news, utah. the most important bits of dust in the world right now, perhaps.in the project. i've been working on bringing a sample — i've been working on bringing a sample back from an asteroid by space _ sample back from an asteroid by space mission for 20 years now. i have _ space mission for 20 years now. i have been— space mission for 20 years now. i have been involved in osiris—rex for ten years _ have been involved in osiris—rex for ten years it — have been involved in osiris—rex for ten years. it has been a long journey— ten years. it has been a long journey to— ten years. it has been a long journey to get here. a lot of the planning — journey to get here. a lot of the planning that has gone into what we will do _ planning that has gone into what we will do when we get the samples back, _ will do when we get the samples back, what samples we actually wanted — back, what samples we actually wanted from the surface of the sample, — wanted from the surface of the sample, that was a long process, very carefully done by the mission team _ very carefully done

rebecca morelle, bbc news, utah. time for a look at the weather. here's stav danaos.there, jane. thank you very much. good afternoon. not a bad day today, weather—wise. in fact, it could be one of the better days of this week, things are set to turn pretty stormy around the middle of the week. there should be plenty of dry weather around in the afternoon, with a good deal of sunshine. most showers today will be confined to northern and western areas, closer to these areas of low pressure, and you will notice few isobars. not as windy as yesterday, certainly more sunshine around. most of the rain today in argyll and the highlands, southern and eastern scotland not doing too badly. one or two showers across western england and wales, but there really is about it. the rest of this afternoon it's pretty decent. lengthy sunny spells around. still quite windy across northern and western scotland and northern ireland. central, southern and eastern england see much lighter winds, so temperatures responding, maybe 22 or 23 degrees. it will feel very pleasant and that sunshine.

rebecca morelle, bbc news, utah.h, where we can speak to arn—jani polit, who's a senior systems engineer with the university of arizona's lunar and planetary laboratory — and serves as mission implementation systems engineerfor the 0siris—rex mission. and we can now talk to richard greenwood, a meteorite researcher at the open university, who's involved in the analysis of asteroid samples. so, anjani, it's an extraordinary process, so how did you manage it with mac that's correct, this was an incredibly complex and challenging mission. ~ �* ., ., , incredibly complex and challenging mission. �* ., ., , , mission. we've had so many people workin: to mission. we've had so many people working to make _ mission. we've had so many people working to make this _ mission. we've had so many people working to make this happen. - mission. we've had so many people working to make this happen. the l working to make this happen. the spacecraft launched seven years ago and it's been to itsjourney to asteroid bennu, we collected it

rebecca morelle, bbc news.i am no expert but that sounds good!— sounds good! we will take that, won't we? _ sounds good! we will take that, won't we? not _ sounds good! we will take that, won't we? not moving - sounds good! we will take that, won't we? not moving too i sounds good! we will take that, | won't we? not moving too much sounds good! we will take that, i won't we? not moving too much of course without, _ won't we? not moving too much of course without, i— won't we? not moving too much of course without, i think _ won't we? not moving too much of course without, i think that - won't we? not moving too much of course without, i think that the i course without, i think that the aim _ course without, i think that the aim. :, : :, :, , ::, aim. the weather conditions, we can dream about — aim. the weather conditions, we can dream about at _ aim. the weather conditions, we can dream about at the _ aim. the weather conditions, we can dream about at the moment. - aim. the weather conditions, we can dream abo

will provide some answers about how life began more than a billion years ago. 0ur science editor rebecca morellee after its epicjourney through space. high up its epicjourney through space. high up in the atmosphere, parachute opens, slowing its descent. touchdown. abs, opens, slowing its descent. touchdown.— opens, slowing its descent. touchdown. �* ., touchdown. a textbook landing in the middle of the — touchdown. a textbook landing in the middle of the utah _ touchdown. a textbook landing in the middle of the utah desert. _ touchdown. a textbook landing in the middle of the utah desert. for- touchdown. a textbook landing in the middle of the utah desert. for the . middle of the utah desert. for the lead scientist who spent decades working on the exhibition, it was an emotional moment. i working on the exhibition, it was an emotional moment.— emotional moment. i was fortunate enou:h to emotional moment. i was fortunate enough to be _ emotional moment. i was fortunate enough to be one _ emotional moment. i was fortunate enough to be one of _ emotional moment. i was fortunate enough to be one of

live now to utah to our science correspondent, rebecca morelle. good to talk to you, rebecca.ere you are? ~ , , ., , ., are? well, the sun is not up here at the military — are? well, the sun is not up here at the military base _ are? well, the sun is not up here at the military base in _ are? well, the sun is not up here at the military base in utah, _ are? well, the sun is not up here at the military base in utah, but- are? well, the sun is not up here at the military base in utah, but the i the military base in utah, but the preparations are under way. the helicopters are being wheeled out, ready to take the recovery team out to the landing site once the capsule actually comes down to the ground. the final descent for this mission, you have to remember, a seven year long mission, and it has travelled billions of miles through the solar system, but the last 13 minutes will be perilous. the capsule has to come through the atmosphere travelling at 27,000 mph. it will experience temperatures of 3000 celsius before two parachutes open which should hopefully take it down to the de

the retrieval of the capsule happened in the us state of utah, from where rebecca morelle reports.t has entered the earth's atmosphere. a first glimpse of the capsule after its epicjourney through space. high up in the atmosphere, a parachute opens, slowing its descent. touchdown! it has touched down. a textbook landing in the middle of the utah desert. for the team who have spent decades working on the osiris—rex mission, it's an emotional moment. it went absolutely perfectly. perfect landing, we didn't move, we landed a nice, soft soil. the capsule looks flawless. i cried like a baby in the helicopter when i heard the parachute was open. it was an overwhelming moment for me. inside the capsule is the most precious sample, fragments of an asteroid called bennu, that could reveal the story of our solar system. the team quickly secures the craft, to prevent contamination, and attaches it to a 30—metre line slung beneath a helicopter. this is the moment that nasa has been waiting for. after seven long years, travelling billions of miles to bennu and back, the capsule is finally here.

nasa are eagerly awaiting the capsule's arrival in the utah desert — where our science editor, rebecca morelleyear long osiris—rex mission. after travelling for billions of miles through our solar system, this capsule — which is carrying the precious fragments of asteroid bennu — will make its way through the atmosphere and all the way down to the ground here in utah. but that descent will be perilous. it will speed through the atmosphere at 27,000 miles an hour, experiencing temperatures of 3000 degrees celsius. it will need two parachutes to slow it down and offer, hopefully, a soft landing. the capsule has no tracking or gps on board so the team will have to use long—range telescopes and infrared cameras to try and find it as it comes through, so it will be a nerve wracking wait for them. once they have the co—ordinates they will get into the helicopter and head out to the recovery site because the key thing is to get the capsule and its contents into a clean room as soon as possible. they do not want any contamination. the big question, i guess, is why go to all of this trouble? the first

clues about the formation of our planet, more than four billion years ago. 0ur science editor rebecca morelleerrain, it tops nasa's list of space rocks that pose a danger to our planet. but it could also shed light on our very beginnings. so nasa decided to get up—close and personal with it. after a two—yearjourney, captured on camera, this was the moment the 0siris—rex spacecraft collected a sample — in a smash—and—grab that lasted just five seconds. these bits of bennu were safely stowed in a capsule, and now they're heading back to earth. we're looking at material that existed before our planet did, before the origin of life. in fact, some of it may have been from even before the solar system formed. so we're looking at the beginning of our story. how did our solar system form, how did asteroids come together? and did asteroids like bennu literally make the earth a habitable world? for the landing site, they've chosen a vast wilderness. after travelling for billions of miles through space, the capsule is going to land somewhere over here in the utah desert. scientists think there's about 2

will shed light on how our planet formed, more than four billion years ago. 0ur science editor rebecca morelleg billions of miles, captured on camera the moment the osiris—rex spacecraft collected its sample in a smash and grab lasting just five seconds.

clues about the formation of our planet 7 more than four billion years ago. 0ur science editor, rebecca morelle00m wide rock hurtling through space. with its boulder—strewn terrain, it tops nasa's list of space rocks that pose a danger to our planet. but it could also shed light on our very beginnings. so nasa decided to get up close and personal with it. after a two—year journey captured on camera, this was the moment the 0siris—rex spacecraft collected a sample in a smash—and—grab that lasted just five seconds. these bits of bennu were safely stowed in a capsule, and now they're heading back to earth. we're looking at material that existed before our planet did, before the origin of life. in fact, some of it may have been from even before the solar system formed. so we're looking at the beginning of our story. how did our solar system form, how did asteroids come together? and did asteroids like bennu literally make the earth a habitable world7 for the landing site, they've chosen a vast wilderness. after travelling for billions of miles through space, the capsule is going to land somewhere o

rebecca morelle, bbc news, utah. fascinating.hington later, who can explain what happens next. , ~ later, who can explain what happens next. , . ., ., next. very exciting. from one extreme _ next. very exciting. from one extreme to — next. very exciting. from one extreme to another. - a rare octopus has been filmed on a live stream of the deep oceon. dubbed dumbo because of its ear—like fins, similar to the 1940's disney character, the octopus can live at depths of up to 7000 metres and was filmed by a remotely—operated ocean exploration trust vehicle. he is really rather cute. he is filmed by a remote vehicle. he looks a bit lonely. where are his friends? he must have a partner somewhere. it's like a screensaver you would say in a computer. —— you would see. so we watch that for the next few hours? see you tomorrow! i bet carol liked that. good morning, carol. welcome back. thank you. this morning it is a quiet start. not a cold one. for most of us to date will be a dry day with some showers and windy conditions in the north. as

clues about the formation of our planet — more than 4 billion years ago. 0ur science editor, rebecca morelle through space. with its boulder—strewn terrain, it tops nasa's list of space rocks that pose a danger to our planet. but it could also shed light on our very beginnings. so nasa decided to get up close and personal with it. after a two—year journey captured on camera, this was the moment the 0siris—rex spacecraft collected a sample in a smash—and—grab that lasted just five seconds. these bits of bennu were safely stowed in a capsule, and now they're heading back to earth. we're looking at material that existed before our planet did, before the origin of life. in fact, some of it may have been from even before the solar system formed. so we're looking at the beginning of our story. how did our solar system form, how did asteroids come together? and did asteroids like bennu literally make the earth a habitable world? for the landing site, they've chosen a vast wilderness. after travelling for billions of miles through space, the capsule is going to land somewhere over here in the utah d

as our science editor, rebecca morelle, reports. the src has entered the atmosphere. up, a parachute opens, slowing its descent. ., . ., up, a parachute opens, slowing its descent-_ a _ up, a parachute opens, slowing its descent._ a text i up, a parachute opens, slowing its descent._ a text bookl descent. touchdown. a text book landinu in descent. touchdown. a text book landing in the _ descent. touchdown. a text book landing in the middle _ descent. touchdown. a text book landing in the middle of- descent. touchdown. a text book landing in the middle of the i descent. touchdown. a text book landing in the middle of the utah | landing in the middle of the utah desert. forthe landing in the middle of the utah desert. for the team who have spent decades on the mission it is an emotional moment. how did it go? it went perfectly. we didn't stuck it. we landed in nice topsoil. the capsule looks flawless. we landed in nice topsoil. the capsule looks flawless. ii we landed in nice topsoil. the capsule looks flawless. ii cried we landed in nice topsoil. the capsule we landed

clues about the formation of our planet, more than four billion years ago. 0ur science editor rebecca morelle pose a danger to our planet. but it could also shed light on our very beginnings. so nasa decided to get up close and personal with it. after a two—year journey captured on camera, this was the moment the 0siris—rex spacecraft collected a sample in a smash and grab that lasted just five seconds. these bits of bennu were safely stowed in a capsule, and now they're heading back to earth. we're looking at material that existed before our planet did, before the origin of life. in fact, some of it may have been from even before the solar system formed. so we're looking at the beginning of our story. how did our solar system form, how did asteroids come together? and did asteroids like bennu literally make the earth a habitable world? for the landing site, they've chosen a vast wilderness. after travelling for billions of miles through space, the capsule is going to land somewhere over here in the utah desert. scientists think there's about 250 grams of rock and dust inside. it doesn't soun

as our science editor, rebecca morelle, reports bennu has been described as the most dangerous rock ins through space. now heading for the utah desert. finally, it's down. further mission team, jubilation at the end of a seven year mission. the scientists don't yet know how much asteroid material is inside but every grain is precious.- asteroid material is inside but every grain is precious. some of our instruments — every grain is precious. some of our instruments look _ every grain is precious. some of our instruments look at _ every grain is precious. some of our instruments look at the _ every grain is precious. some of our instruments look at the atoms - every grain is precious. some of our instruments look at the atoms that l instruments look at the atoms that make up the crystals inside these rocks and when you're working at that scale, a single stone is an internet landscape to explore. we will be working on these materials for decades and decades into the future. bill for decades and decades into the future. �* ., , , ., , for decades and decades into the future. �* ., , , .,

and our science editor, rebecca morelle is actually in utah for us, waiting for the landing.bout the anticipation in utah? . ~ tell us about the anticipation in utah? . a, , tell us about the anticipation in utah? a, , , utah? the clock really is ticking now, the landing _ utah? the clock really is ticking now, the landing is _ utah? the clock really is ticking now, the landing is happening l utah? the clock really is ticking | now, the landing is happening in less than an hour. we have just seen some of the helicopters who are taking their recovery team out to the landing sites, they are poised and waiting for the capsule to come down. the descent will be perilous, the capsule will be blazing through the capsule will be blazing through the atmosphere at 27,000 miles an hour, experiencing temperatures of 3000 degrees. two parachutes will open which will hopefully take it down for a soft landing, where the recovery team will head out to bring the capital back to the military base where we are located right now. rebecca, we are often told space as a wild west when it comes to c

our science editor rebecca morelle has the details.erial to study and try and understand its history. what asteroid material to study and try and understand its history. what is so uniuue and understand its history. what is so unique about _ and understand its history. what is so unique about this _ and understand its history. what is so unique about this particular- so unique about this particular sample? scientists, have they been able to study something like this before? , ., , before? yes, we have studied asteroids _ before? yes, we have studied asteroids before _ before? yes, we have studied asteroids before three - before? yes, we have studied i asteroids before three meteorites and there have been a couple of japanese missions that have visited asteroids and collected material and brought that back. the japanese mission, but this is the first nasa mission, but this is the first nasa mission to bring material back from an asteroid. it is bringing a lot more material than the other missions. we think that is about 250 grams of sam

with more here's our science editor, rebecca morelle.way. the helicopters are getting wheeled out ready to take the recovery team out to the landing site once the capsule comes down to the ground. but the final descent for this mission, you have to remember it has been a seven—year mission, has travelled billions of miles through the solar system but the next 50 minutes will be perilous. the capital will be travelling at 27 miles an hour —— 20 7000 miles an hour. two parachutes will open which will hopefully take it down to the desert floor for a soft landing. the recovery team, in these helicopters you have just seen, they will be heading out to the site to bring it back to the base. it will be a nerve—racking last few moments of this mission, which has been going on for so long. there is a sense of nervous anticipation and excitement. there are some very good reasons to go to all of this effort. bennu is the most dangerous rock in our solar system. it tops nasa's list of hazardous asteroids. if you want to think about ways to stop it a

0ur science editor, rebecca morelle, explains. it's a very powerful earthquake.now about it? the earth's surface is divided up into different parts called tectonic plates, and as theyjostle against each other, tension builds up and that energy is released as earthquakes. let's take a closer look at morocco. it sits on the boundary of two plates, africa and eurasia. the african plate is constantly pushing upwards, very slowly into the eurasian plate at about four millimeters a year. now, the epicenter of the quake was here quite a long way from the boundary of the plates, more than 300 miles. but despite this distance, there are faults there that push up the atlas mountains. so it's an area with a lot of earth movement. what's made this quake particularly deadly is that it was shallow. it struck about 11 miles below the surface and it happened late in the evening. this earthquake has been relatively shallow and that means that there is less earth on top to basically dissipate the energy and the shaking. so the shaking, the vibrations will have been very energetic.

our science editor rebecca morelle has the details.re the solar system formed. so we're looking at the beginning of our story. how did our solar system form, how did asteroids come together? and did asteroids like bennu literally make the earth a habitable world? bennu literally make for the landing site, they've chosen a vast wilderness. after travelling for billions of miles through space, the capsule is going to land somewhere over here in the utah desert. scientists think there's about 250 grams of rock and dust inside. it doesn't sound like much. just a handful or so. but every single grain of this is precious. and scientists will study it to reveal the story of our solar system. the return won't be easy. the capsule will speed through the earth's atmosphere at more than 27,000 mph, experiencing temperatures of 3,000 degrees, before descending down to the ground slowed by parachutes. beeping. the nasa team has been practising in the desert, working out the best way to recover the craft after it comes down. the most important thing