Asteroid Bennu 3D Models

These 3D models and images were created using data from NASA’s OSIRIS-REx spacecraft collected while in orbit around asteroid Bennu. These are some of the 3D models that were used to create several SVS Bennu data visualizations, including Tour of Asteroid Bennu, Detailed Global Views of Asteroid Bennu, and Bennu TAG Surface Change.

Additional 3D models are available from the JHUAPL Small Body Mapping Tool (SBMT). The full collection of models includes 5cm resolution tiles for the entire asteroid (only the sample site tile is posted here due to storage limitations).

This global map of asteroid Bennu’s surface is a mosaic of images collected by NASA’s OSIRIS-REx spacecraft between Mar. 7 and Apr. 19, 2019. A total of 2,155 PolyCam images were stitched together and corrected to produce the mosaic. At 2 inches (5 cm) per pixel, this is the highest resolution at which a planetary body has been globally mapped. The spacecraft collected these images at distances ranging from 1.9 to 3.1 miles (3.1 to 5 km) above the asteroid’s surface. Details for the creation of the basemap can be found in “A high-resolution global Basemap of (101955) Bennu” by Bennett et al. Icarus (2020).

The Bennu albedo map was generated using images acquired by PolyCam during Baseball Diamond Flyby 1. The images were photometrically normalized to represent the innate albedo of Bennu’s surface. Details for the creation of the map can be found in the publication “A High-Resolution Normal Albedo Map of Asteroid (101955) Bennu” by Golish et al. Icarus (2020).

Polar regions that were not imaged in Flyby 1 are visualized using the Bennu global basemap, created from PolyCam images acquired during Baseball Diamond Flybys 3 and 4.

In our SVS Bennu visualizations, we mapped the two images above to the 3D models with a spherical UV mapping projection (which uses a projection that is based on a spherical shape wrapped around the mesh). Images were blended to achieve the highest resolution texture while still ensuring global coverage. The albedo map above was used as the top texture layer while the global image mosaic was placed underneath to fill the polar regions.

The next two models are versions of the 5cm resolution sample site tile that have been prepared for 3D printing (added thickness, centered, and adjusted scale). The ‘After TAG’ model was created by offsetting the ‘Before TAG’ mesh vertices using pre-post TAG surface height change data. This offset is only applied to the region within 7.5 meters of the impact site, as the data are less accurate further from the impact.