Asteroids

NASA defines asteroids as ancient space rocks left over from the early formation of the solar system about 4.6 billion years ago. To discover and study these space rocks, NASA has a suite of advanced ground and space-based telescopes. This not only helps them to keep an eye on these asteroids and conduct studies but also helps minimize the uncertainties around their close approaches. With its advanced tech, the space agency has shed light on an asteroid that is expected to pass by Earth today, November 22.Asteroid 2023…

NASA's Defense Coordination Office (PDCO), which is responsible for monitoring the skies and keeping a watch on various Near-Earth Objects (NEOs), has issued details about an asteroid that is expected to pass by Earth today, November 21. The asteroid, designated Asteroid 2023 VW5, will pass the planet by a close margin of 1.7 million kilometers. As per NASA, this space rock is travelling in its orbit at a breakneck speed of approximately 40269 kilometers per hour. Here's all about Asteroid 2023 VW5.Asteroid 2023 VW5:…

NASA, with the help of its advanced ground and space-based telescopes, has tracked a mammoth asteroid whose orbit will bring it very close to Earth today. As per the Center for Near-Earth Object Studies (CNEOS), an asteroid, given the designation of Asteroid 2023 VE7, is on its way toward Earth and could make its closest approach to the planet today, November 20.This near-Earth space rock is expected to pass Earth at a distance of just 5.3 million kilometers and at a speed of 70811 kilometers per hour which is much…

NASA defines asteroids as ancient space rocks left over from the early formation of our solar system about 4.6 billion years ago. Now, the space agency has alerted that one of them is expected to pass Earth today, November 17. The asteroid, given the designation Asteroid 2023 VG5, is predicted to pass the planet at a distance of 2.2 million kilometers. It was discovered by NASA's Defense Coordination Office (PDCO), which is responsible for monitoring the skies and keeping a watch on various Near-Earth Objects (NEOs).…

Earth is almost 4.5 billion years old and there have been several asteroid impacts throughout history. In a new development, NASA's Center for Near-Earth Object Studies (CNEOS) has shed light on a Near-Earth asteroid that is set to pass Earth by a close margin today, November 13. Whilst this space rock will come very close to the planet, it is not expected to impact the surface and leave a crater in its wake, causing catastrophic damage. According to the space agency, Asteroid 2023 VX will pass by Earth at a distance of…

About 5 and a 1/2 years from now, astronomers predict, an asteroid about as wide as the Empire State Building is tall will streak through space within 20,000 miles (32,200 kms) of Earth, the closest any celestial object of that size will have come to our planet in modern history.When it does, a spacecraft launched by NASA in 2016 is expected to be in position to provide a detailed examination of this rare close encounter.The mission, directed by University of Arizona scientists, is expected to yield insights into…

Illustration: NASATheir analysis looks convincing, says Andrew Rivkin, a planetary scientist at Johns Hopkins University’s Applied Physics Laboratory who studies the composition of asteroids and who was not involved in the paper. “Short of going and grabbing a piece, like NASA just did with Bennu, this is probably as close to conclusive as we get,” he says.  Rivkin emphasizes that Kamo’oalewa is an unusual object: Out of some 80,000 meteorites collected on Earth, only a few percent have come from the moon, and of the…

NASA, with the help of its advanced ground and space-based telescopes, has tracked an asteroid whose orbit will bring it very close to Earth in the coming days. According to the details published by the Center for Near-Earth Object Studies (CNEOS), an asteroid, given the designation of Asteroid 2020 PP1, is on its way toward Earth and could make its closest approach to the planet tomorrow, July 28.As per the details, Asteroid 2020 PP1 is expected to make its closest approach to the planet at a distance of just 6.5…

We've heard the tale of an asteroid crashing on Earth nearly 65 million years ago and wiping out the dinosaurs since our childhood. But did you know that it is backed up by a hypothesis? According to the Alvarez hypothesis, this extinction was caused by a massive asteroid that crashed on Earth. Scientists have also discovered the origin of the asteroid. It would've originated between the orbit of Mars and Jupiter. The asteroid terraformed the planet and is likely the reason that started the extinction of dinosaurs.…

Eager scientists and a gleaming lab awaits.A sample from the asteroid Bennu, which could be key to understanding the formation of the solar system and our own planet, is set to be analyzed at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston after it reaches Earth in late September. The precious cargo is currently aboard OSIRIS-REx, a US space probe launched in 2016 to Bennu, which orbits the Sun at an average distance of about 105 million miles (168 million kilometers). Long white sleeves hang from the huge metal and glass box in…