Tag: asteroids
At last, a close look at Vesta
Dawn has sent back its first images of Vesta from low orbit. I like this one best:
Using the spacecraft’s last drops of fuel, engineers are attempting to aim Deep Impact toward a rendezvous with near Earth asteroid 2002 GT.
Using the spacecraft’s last drops of fuel, engineers are attempting to aim Deep Impact to a 2020 rendezvous with near Earth asteroid 2002 GT.
Dawn has now lowered its orbit to 130 miles above the asteroid Vesta
Dawn has now lowered its orbit to an average elevation of 130 miles above the asteroid Vesta.
Expect lots of close-up images in the weeks to come.
Colorful Vesta
Tonight’s press conference at the American Geophysical Union conference focused on the latest results from Dawn, orbiting the giant asteroid Vesta. Or to put it as scientist Vishnu Reddy put it, “Vesta is the most colorful asteroid in the solar system.”
At least, in geological terms. To our human eye the asteroid wouldn’t be so spectacular. However, the false color images released by the scientists show the global geological diversity of Vesta. From the press release:
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Dawn soars over Vesta in 3D
Dawn soars over Vesta in 3D.
Scientists have released a new 28 frame movie of asteroid 2005 YU55
Scientists have released a new 28 frame movie of asteroid 2005 YU55, created as the asteroid zipped past the Earth this past week.
New data suggests that the asteroid Lutetia is a Rare Survivor from the Birth of the Earth
A new analysis of data suggests that the asteroid Lutetia is a leftover fragment from the same original material that formed the Earth, Venus and Mercury.
NASA’s Deep Space Network has captured a radar image of asteroid 2005 YU55
NASA’s Deep Space Network has captured a radar image of asteroid 2005 YU55, set to buzz past the Earth tomorrow.
Watch asteroid 2005 YU buzz the Earth tomorrow with your backyard telescope
Watch asteroid 2005 YU55 buzz the Earth tomorrow with your backyard telescope.
Astronomers prepare for an asteroid fly-by on November 8, using the Earth as the spacecraft
Astronomers prepare for an asteroid fly-by on November 8, using the Earth as the spacecraft.
Large enough to cause regional devastation if it were to hit the Earth, 2005 YU55 is the closest pass by an asteroid this big since 1976, and there won’t be another until 2028. The near miss provides an unparallelled opportunity for radar, optical and infrared observations of a mysterious charcoal-black world similar to the type of asteroid that astronauts may one day set foot on.
Radar bonanza “It’s a bit like a spacecraft fly-by with the Earth being the spacecraft,” says astronomer Don Yeomans at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Pasadena, California. “It’s going to be an extraordinary target for radar.”
“It’s not a rubble pile, it’s a solid block of rock.”
Amateur astronomers discover near Earth asteroid
Amateur astronomers discover near Earth asteroid.
Rough Terrain
The Dawn scientists have released another spectacular image of the south polar mountain on Vesta whose relative size is three times that of Mount Everest. More information about the image can be found here. From the caption:
The peak of Vesta’s south pole mountain, seen in the center of the image, rises about 13 miles (22 kilometers) above the average height of the surrounding terrain. Another impressive structure is a large scarp, a cliff with a steep slope, on the right side of this image. The scarp bounds part of the south polar depression, and the Dawn team’s scientists believe features around its base are probably the result of landslides.
It appears the light gravity on Vesta allows for the formation of extreme topology.
Dawn begins close-up orbit observations
Dawn begins close-up orbit observations of Vesta. More new results here.
In this orbit, the average distance from the spacecraft to the Vesta surface is 420 miles (680 kilometers), which is four times closer than the previous survey orbit.
NASA has identified ninety percent of the largest near-Earth asteroids
Data from the infrared telescope WISE has now identified ninety percent of the largest near-Earth asteroids.
NASA researchers also downgraded their estimate of the number of medium-sized asteroids, saying there are 44 percent fewer than previously believed. The downside is that scientists have yet to find many of these mid-sized asteroids, which could destroy a metropolitan city.
WISE telescope raises questions about asteroid that is thought to have killed dinosaurs
The WISE space telescope has raised questions about source of the asteroid believed to have killed the dinosaurs.
Video from Dawn
NASA has released an update summarizing what scientists have found since Dawn went into orbit around Vesta in July. The video below, compiled from images Dawn has taken, gives a nice visual overview. The most interesting big feature, understated by the video, is the series of grooves that appear to encircle the asteroid’s equator. To my eye it almost looks like Vesta was once two asteroids that got merged into one, with these grooves indicating the weld point.
The direct link to the video can be found here.
Embedded video from
NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory California Institute of Technology
Astronomers take one last close look at 1999 RQ36 before sending mission there
Astronomers plan one last close look at 1,900-foot-wide asteroid before sending a space probe there to collect samples.
Discovered in 1999, the OSIRIS-REx target asteroid, designated 1999 RQ36, nears Earth once every six years. During the 2011 closest approach in early September, it will be 10.9 million miles (17.5 million kilometers) away. In 1999, closest approach was 1.4 million miles (2.3 million kilometers).
Strangely, the article above never mentions the fact that 1999 RQ36 has 1 in a 1000 chance of hitting the Earth in 2182, which to my mind is the primary reason for studying it.