PHOTOGRAMMETRIC PROCESSING OF OSIRIS-REX IMAGES OF ASTEROID (101955) BENNU

Abstract

The principal objective of the Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification, and Security–Regolith Explorer (OSIRIS-REx) mission is to retrieve a sample of the asteroid (101955) Bennu and return it to Earth. OSIRIS-REx arrived at Bennu in December 2018. Images of the asteroid by the OSIRIS-REx Camera Suite (OCAMS) were photogrammetrically controlled to produce a global basemap and site-specific image mosaics essential to the selection of a primary and backup sample site, which were announced in December 2019. In the control process, OCAMS images were registered to shape models created from OSIRIS-REx Laser Altimeter (OLA) data and from the process of stereophotoclinometry. This paper summarizes the photogrammetric control to date of images collected at Bennu. We briefly review the mission and the OCAMS imaging sensors. We then describe the photogrammetric control process for the global mapping campaign and targeted reconnaissance surveys of candidate sample sites. Finally, we discuss ongoing and future work.