A New Set of Calculations for Catastrophic Disruptions of Main Belt Asteroids
A team of astronomers has revealed a new set of calculations for catastrophic disruptions of main belt asteroids, finding that for asteroids about one hundred…
Asteroid
Space Agencies Across the Globe Prepare to Explore Comets and Asteroids
With Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency’s recent launch of the Hayabusa2 mission, NASA and other space agencies across the globe are opening up new possibilities for…
New NASA Animation Follows Long, Strange Trip of Asteroid Bennu
This new six minute animated video (below) details NASA’s OSIRIS-REx mission, Asteroid Bennu, and the formation of our solar system. Born from the rubble of…
How Asteroid Vesta May Have Gotten Its Deep Grooves
Using NASA’s ultra-high-speed cannon and computer models to simulate asteroid collisions, researchers from Brown University show how Vesta may have gotten the deep grooves that…
Rosetta Spacecraft Reveals Hidden Crater on Asteroid Lutetia
Images by ESA’s Rosetta spacecraft reveal the existence of a large impact crater on the unseen side of the Lutetia asteroid. Rosetta flew past Lutetia…
Small Asteroid 2014 RC to Pass Near Earth
This coming Sunday a twenty meter asteroid called 2014 RC will safely pass near Earth at a distance of about 25,000 miles. A small asteroid,…
Spitzer Space Telescope Views Collision Between Large Asteroids
Data from the Spitzer Space Telescope has revealed a huge amount of fresh dust around NGC 2547-ID8, leaving scientists to believe that two large asteroids…
Near-Earth Asteroid 1950 DA Held Together by Cohesive Forces
Researchers at the University of Tennessee have discovered that near-Earth asteroid 1950 DA is held together by cohesive forces called van der Waals. Researchers at…
Astronomers View Near-Earth Asteroid 2014 HQ124 as it Passes Earth
Using the Deep Space Network antenna and two other radio telescopes, astronomers were able to capture radar observations of asteroid 2014 HQ124 as it passed…
CfA Astronomers Explore the Economic Realities of Mining an Asteroid
A new study from researchers at the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics explores the economic realities of mining an asteroid. Last month NASA held a forum…
Study Reveals Ancient Impact of Massive Asteroid
A newly published study reveals an ancient asteroid impact that left a crater nearly 500 kilometers across: up to two and a half times larger…
Surprise Discovery Reveals Asteroid Chariklo Surrounded by Two Thin Rings
A surprise discovery shows that the remote asteroid Chariklo is surrounded by two dense and narrow rings, making it the smallest object discovered to have…
Hubble Views Asteroid P/2013 R3 Mysteriously Disintegrating
Hubble views the disintegration of asteroid P/2013 R3, providing detailed observations that pinpoint the process responsible. The NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope has photographed the never-before-seen…
New Radar Images of Near-Earth Asteroid 2006 DP14
Using the Deep Space Network antenna, scientists have gathered new radar data on asteroid 2006 DP14 that show the physical characteristics of the asteroid and…
The First Evidence that Asteroids Can Have a Highly Varied Internal Structure
By using precise measurements of the asteroid Itokawa, astronomers have discovered the first evidence that asteroids can have a highly varied internal structure. ESO’s New…
Spitzer Measures the Physical Properties of NEO 2009BD
Using the Spitzer Space Telescope, a new study measures the physical properties of NEO 2009BD. Asteroids (or comets) whose orbits bring them close to the…
Mars “Shakes Up” Asteroid Surfaces
A new study from MIT researchers has found that Mars, like Earth, can “refresh” asteroid surfaces if in close enough contact. For nearly as long…
Hubble Sees an Asteroid with Six Comet-Like Tails
Using the Hubble Space Telescope, astronomers have viewed for the first time an asteroid with six comet-like tails of dust radiating from it. Astronomers viewing…