(WHTM) — On February 14, 2000, NASA’s deep exploration satellite NEAR (Near Earth Asteroid Rendezvous) entered orbit around the asteroid 443 Eros, becoming the first human-made object to orbit an asteroid. The mission almost ended due to a malfunction, but before it was done the spacecraft would accomplish a task for which it had not […]
NASA's OSIRIS-REx mission taught astronomers how little they know about space rocks. They might be only a few hundreds of feet wide, but their geology appears surprisingly complex.
We have now discovered 30 039 near-Earth asteroids in the Solar System - rocky bodies orbiting the Sun on a path that brings them close to Earth's orbit. The majority of these were discovered in the last decade, showing how our ability to detect.
We have now discovered 30 039 near-Earth asteroids in the Solar System - rocky bodies orbiting the Sun on a path that brings them close to Earth's orbit. The majority of these were discovered in the last decade, showing how our ability to detect.
An asteroid that measures a little over half a mile wide, bigger than any building on Earth, is to fly by Earth and through the inner solar system, with a proximity close enough to our planet that even backyard astronomers can get a glimpse.