After launching from Cape Canaveral, Florida, in September 2016, OSIRIS-REx spent the next year performing a close flyby of Earth. At its closest approach over Antarctica, the spacecraft flew roughly 10,700 miles (17,200 km) overhead — a maneuver that enabled it to slingshot itself to Bennu by increasing its speed by 8,451 mph (13,601 km/h).
Upon arriving at Bennu, OSIRIS-REx made a series of fine-tuned blasts to put it into orbit around the tiny asteroid. Then, for nearly two years, the spacecraft studied Bennu's surface, taking side-by-side photos that were later stitched into stereoscopic images (made by Queen guitarist Brian May, who worked with the team) to give scientists the best view of what would make for a safe and scientifically valuable landing site.
After much deliberation, the researchers settled on a rocky site they named Nightingale, which OSIRIS-REx touched down upon on Oct. 20, 2020. To stick the landing and not sink completely through the rubble-pile asteroid's surface, the spacecraft fired a quick blast of nitrogen gas from its Touch-and-Go Sample-Acquisition Mechanism (TAGSAM).