Items tagged with asteroid
The European Space Agency is preparing to rendezvous with an asteroid that is "about the size of a cruise liner" as it makes an exceptionally close flyby of Earth in 2029. Researchers will use the Rapid Apophis Mission for Space Safety (Ramses) to study the asteroid as Earth’s gravity alters its physical...
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Scientists with NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) tracked two near-Earth asteroids recently, one with a moon of its own, and the second having only been detected 13 days prior to its closest approach to Earth. The data collected during the radar observations will provide valuable practice for planetary defense...
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An asteroid the size of the Great Pyramid of Giza, discovered just two weeks ago, makes a close approach to Earth today. While the asteroid, named 2024 MK, poses no danger to Earth, it is a stark reminder of how large asteroids can escape detection until it could be too late.
The idea of a large sized asteroid...
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NASA’s Planetary Defense Coordination Office, in partnership with the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), conducted the fifth biennial Planetary Defense Interagency Tabletop Exercise this week. The tabletop exercise gathering aimed “to inform and assess the ability as a nation to respond effectively to the...
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According to NASA, there are several airplane-sized asteroids hurtling toward Earth this week. The largest of the five is estimated to be 110 feet in size, while the closest will come within 447,000 miles of Earth.
It is not uncommon for large asteroids to go zipping by Earth at a safe distance. This week, however...
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First discovered in 2004, Asteroid Apophis, also known as “God of Chaos,” has been watched closely by astronomers and scientists. The large space rock has become the center of focus because of its expected close flyby of Earth on what is projected to be none other than Friday 13, 2029.
Asteroid 99942 Apophis is...
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A new study has found that NASA’s DART mission that slammed a spacecraft into an asteroid may not have had the impact once thought. The impact simulation study suggested that DART did not leave an impact crater; rather, it reshaped the entire body of the asteroid.
In September 2022, NASA’s DART spacecraft crashed...
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Heads up! A potentially hazardous asteroid the size of a large skyscraper is about to have a close encounter with Earth, and everyone can watch live. No, asteroid 2008 OS7 does not pose a risk to anyone, but it will come within about 2.8 million kilometers, or 7.4 times the average lunar distance.
Asteroid 2008 OS7...
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A small asteroid impacted Earth’s atmosphere over Berlin, Germany, with videos of the fireball lighting up social media. The 3 foot (1 meter) asteroid was detected shortly ahead of it entering Earth’s atmosphere.
A couple of days ago, NASA posted a tweet, remarking, “A tiny asteroid will disintegrate as a harmless...
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A NASA curation team was finally able to remove two stubborn fasteners that have been keeping the space agency from being able to retrieve the remainder of a sample collected from asteroid Bennu. The curation team had to pause the disassembly of the TAGSAM (Touch-and-Go Sample Acquisition Mechanism) head from...
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NASA plans on getting a bird's-eye view of asteroid Apophis, also known as the “God of Chaos,” as it makes an exceptionally close approach to Earth in 2029. The spacecraft that will have a front-row view is the same one that delivered a sample of asteroid Bennu back to Earth earlier this year.
OSIRIS-REx (Origins...
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In a cosmic game of hide and seek, an asteroid will pass in front of one of the biggest and brightest stars visible in the night sky. Asteroid Leona will pass in front of the star Alpha Orionis, also known as Betelgeuse (seen in the image above via NASA), which is a red supergiant in the constellation...
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NASA delivered a teaspoon size sample of the asteroid Bennu to be studied in the labs at the Natural History Museum in London. NASA describes the 500-meter (0.3 miles) wide asteroid as being the most dangerous rock in the solar system because it has a chance of hitting Earth within the next 300 years.
Scientists at...
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NASA's Lucy spacecraft surprises the space agency again with another unexpected find. Lucy will explore a record-breaking number of asteroids as it becomes the first mission to investigate the Jupiter Trojan asteroids.
Lucy is on a 12-year mission that will take the spacecraft right into the midst of a belt of...
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NASA’s Lucy probe cuts its teeth with its first up-close encounter with an asteroid named Dinkinesh before moving on to observe 10 other asteroids on its 12-year journey. Lucy had been tracking the asteroid since September 3, 2023.
According to NASA, the encounter was the first time that Lucy got a close look at an...
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NASA has collected a small amount of the rock and dust sample that its OSIRIS-REx spacecraft brought back from the asteroid Bennu. However, it is having a bit of trouble accessing the rest. That's because the team is having issues loosening two of the 35 fasteners on the Touch-and-Go Sample Acquisition Mechanism...
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Legendary Queen guitarist Brian May played a vital role in the OSIRIS-REx mission that successfully returned a sample of asteroid Bennu. May and his colleague, Claudia Manzoni, created stereoscopic images from the O-Rex data that helped the team locate a safe landing site for sample collection.
The 76-year-old...
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NASA's Psyche mission has been delayed slightly. However, the space agency still wants civilians to get psyched about the spacecraft traveling to a unique metal-rich asteroid orbiting the Sun between Mars and Jupiter. A new teaser trailer from NASA provides a little insight into the mission that scientists believe...
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NASA is making slight adjustments to the flight path of its OSIRIS-REx spacecraft, which is scheduled to deliver a sample capsule from Bennu, an asteroid the size of the Empire State Building, back to Earth. The final correction maneuvers ensured the spacecraft lands in a predetermined area on the Defense Department's...
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NASA is currently tracking five bus and airplane-sized asteroids that are expected to make close approaches to Earth this week. The near-Earth events come just ahead of the space agency's Psyche mission, which will launch next month and explore the metal-rich asteroid Bennu.
The five asteroids hurtling through...
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A retired technical fellow has devised a method for restructuring an asteroid into a large rotating space station. David Jensen says the project could be completed in as little as 12 years with a single rocket launch containing a base station, spider robots, and a modest set of supplies.
The idea of utilizing an...
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A relatively new algorithm designed to discover asteroids has spotted its first space rock—a 600-foot-long asteroid classified as potentially hazardous (don't worry, it's not going to smash into Earth). The algorithm was designed to be used with the upcoming Vera C. Rubin Observatory, which will scan the night sky in...
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