Small asteroid discovered orbiting Earth
Photos: All about asteroids
The
first asteroid to be identified, 1 Ceres, was discovered January 1,
1801, by Giuseppe Piazzi in Palermo, Sicily. But is Ceres just another
asteroid? Observations by NASA's Hubble Space Telescope show that Ceres
has a lot in common with planets like Earth. It's almost round and it
may have a lot of pure water ice beneath its surface. Ceres is about 606
by 565 miles (975 by 909 kilometers) in size and scientists say it may
be more accurate to call it a mini-planet. NASA's Dawn spacecraft is on
its way to Ceres to investigate. The spacecraft is 35 million miles (57
million kilometers) from Ceres and 179 million miles (288 million
kilometers) from Earth. The photo on the left was taken by Keck
Observatory, Mauna Kea, Hawaii. The image on the right was taken by the
Hubble Space Telescope.
Hide Caption
10 of 19
Photos: All about asteroids
One
big space rock got upgraded recently. This image of Vesta was taken by
the Dawn spacecraft, which is on its way to Ceres. In 2012, scientists
said data from the spacecraft show Vesta is more like a planet than an
asteroid and so Vesta is now considered a protoplanet.
Hide Caption
11 of 19
Photos: All about asteroids
The
three-mile long (4.8-kilometer) asteroid Toutatis flew about 4.3
million miles (6.9 million kilometers) from Earth on December 12, 2012.
NASA scientists used radar images to make a short movie.
Hide Caption
12 of 19
Photos: All about asteroids
Asteroids
have hit Earth many times. It's hard to get an exact count because
erosion has wiped away much of the evidence. The mile-wide Meteor Crater
in Arizona, seen above, was created by a small asteroid that hit about
50,000 years ago, NASA says. Other famous impact craters on Earth
include Manicouagan in Quebec, Canada; Sudbury in Ontario, Canada; Ries
Crater in Germany, and Chicxulub on the Yucatan coast in Mexico.
Hide Caption
13 of 19
Photos: All about asteroids
NASA
scientists say the impact of an asteroid or comet several hundred
million years ago created the Aorounga crater in the Sahara Desert of
northern Chad. The crater has a diameter of about 10.5 miles (17
kilometers). This image was taken by the Space Shuttle Endeavour in
1994.
Hide Caption
14 of 19
Photos: All about asteroids
In
1908 in Tunguska, Siberia, scientists theorize an asteroid flattened
about 750 square miles (1,200 square kilometers) of forest in and around
the Podkamennaya Tunguska River in what is now Krasnoyarsk Krai,
Russia.
Hide Caption
15 of 19
Photos: All about asteroids
What else is up there? Is anyone watching? NASA's Near-Earth Object Program
is trying to track down all asteroids and comets that could threaten
Earth. NASA says 9,672 near-Earth objects have been discovered as of
February 5, 2013. Of these, 1,374 have been classified as Potentially
Hazardous Asteroids, or objects that could one day threaten Earth.
Hide Caption
16 of 19
Photos: All about asteroids
One
of the top asteroid-tracking scientists is Don Yeomans at the Jet
Propulsion Laboratory, which is managed by the California Institute of
Technology. Yeomans says every day, "Earth is pummeled by more than 100
tons of material that spewed off asteroids and comets." Fortunately,
most of the asteroid trash is tiny and it burns up when it hits the
atmosphere, creating meteors, or shooting stars. Yeomans says it's very
rare for big chunks of space litter to hit Earth's surface. Those chunks
are called meteorites.
Hide Caption
17 of 19
Photos: All about asteroids
Asteroids
and comets are popular fodder for Earth-ending science fiction movies.
Two of the biggest blockbusters came out in 1998: "Deep Impact" and
"Armageddon." (Walt Disney Studios) Others include "Meteorites!" (1998),
"Doomsday Rock" (1997), "Asteroid" (1997), "Meteor" (1979), and "A Fire
in the Sky" (1978). Can you name others?
Hide Caption
18 of 19
Photos: All about asteroids
Asteroid 1998 QE2 is about 3.75 million miles from Earth. The white dot is the moon, or satellite, orbiting the asteroid.
Hide Caption
19 of 19
Photos: All about asteroids
This
graphic shows asteroid 2016 HO3 orbiting Earth as the pair go around
the sun together. The asteroid was first spotted on April 27, 2016, by
the Pan-STARRS 1 asteroid survey telescope on Haleakala, Hawaii.
Hide Caption
1 of 19
Photos: All about asteroids
All about asteroids – This
graphic shows the track for asteroid 2004 BL86, which flew about
745,000 miles from Earth on January 26, 2015. That's about three times
as far away as the moon.
Hide Caption
2 of 19
Photos: All about asteroids
This
graphic shows the path Asteroid 2014 RC took as it passed Earth on
September 7, 2015. The space rock came within one-tenth the distance
from Earth to the moon.
Hide Caption
3 of 19
Photos: All about asteroids
NASA scientists used Earth-based radar to produce these sharp views of the asteroid designated "2014 HQ124" on June 8, 2014. NASA called the images "most detailed radar images of a near-Earth asteroid ever obtained."
Hide Caption
4 of 19
Photos: All about asteroids
The
Hubble Space Telescope snapped a series of images on September 10,
2013, revealing a never-before-seen sight: An asteroid that appeared to
have six comet-like tails.
Hide Caption
5 of 19
Photos: All about asteroids
A
diagram shows the orbit of an asteroid named 2013 TV135 (in blue),
which made headlines in September 2013 when it passed close by Earth.
The probability of it striking Earth one day stands at 1 in 63,000, and
even those odds are fading fast as scientists find out more about the
asteroid. It will most likely swing past our planet again in 2032,
according to NASA.
Hide Caption
6 of 19
Photos: All about asteroids
Asteroid
2012 DA14 made a record-close pass -- 17,100 miles -- by Earth on
February 15, 2013. Most asteroids are made of rocks, but some are metal.
They orbit mostly between Jupiter and Mars in the main asteroid belt.
Scientists estimate there are tens of thousands of asteroids and when
they get close to our planet, they are called near-Earth objects.
Hide Caption
7 of 19
Photos: All about asteroids
Another
asteroid, Apophis, got a lot of attention from space scientists and the
media when initial calculations indicated a small chance it could hit
Earth in 2029 or 2036. NASA scientists have since ruled out an impact,
but on April 13, 2029, Apophis, which is about the size of 3½ football
fields, will make a close visit -- flying about 19,400 miles (31,300
kilometers) above Earth's surface. The images above were taken by the
European Space Agency's Herschel Space Observatory in January 2013.
Hide Caption
8 of 19
Photos: All about asteroids
If
you really want to know about asteroids, you need to see one up close.
NASA did just that. A spacecraft called NEAR-Shoemaker, named in honor
of planetary scientist Gene Shoemaker, was the first probe to touch down
on an asteroid, landing on the asteroid Eros on February 12, 2001. This
image was taken on February 14, 2000, just after the probe began
orbiting Eros.
Hide Caption
9 of 19
Photos: All about asteroids
The
first asteroid to be identified, 1 Ceres, was discovered January 1,
1801, by Giuseppe Piazzi in Palermo, Sicily. But is Ceres just another
asteroid? Observations by NASA's Hubble Space Telescope show that Ceres
has a lot in common with planets like Earth. It's almost round and it
may have a lot of pure water ice beneath its surface. Ceres is about 606
by 565 miles (975 by 909 kilometers) in size and scientists say it may
be more accurate to call it a mini-planet. NASA's Dawn spacecraft is on
its way to Ceres to investigate. The spacecraft is 35 million miles (57
million kilometers) from Ceres and 179 million miles (288 million
kilometers) from Earth. The photo on the left was taken by Keck
Observatory, Mauna Kea, Hawaii. The image on the right was taken by the
Hubble Space Telescope.
Hide Caption
10 of 19
Photos: All about asteroids
One
big space rock got upgraded recently. This image of Vesta was taken by
the Dawn spacecraft, which is on its way to Ceres. In 2012, scientists
said data from the spacecraft show Vesta is more like a planet than an
asteroid and so Vesta is now considered a protoplanet.
Hide Caption
11 of 19
Photos: All about asteroids
The
three-mile long (4.8-kilometer) asteroid Toutatis flew about 4.3
million miles (6.9 million kilometers) from Earth on December 12, 2012.
NASA scientists used radar images to make a short movie.
Hide Caption
12 of 19
Photos: All about asteroids
Asteroids
have hit Earth many times. It's hard to get an exact count because
erosion has wiped away much of the evidence. The mile-wide Meteor Crater
in Arizona, seen above, was created by a small asteroid that hit about
50,000 years ago, NASA says. Other famous impact craters on Earth
include Manicouagan in Quebec, Canada; Sudbury in Ontario, Canada; Ries
Crater in Germany, and Chicxulub on the Yucatan coast in Mexico.
Hide Caption
13 of 19
Photos: All about asteroids
NASA
scientists say the impact of an asteroid or comet several hundred
million years ago created the Aorounga crater in the Sahara Desert of
northern Chad. The crater has a diameter of about 10.5 miles (17
kilometers). This image was taken by the Space Shuttle Endeavour in
1994.
Hide Caption
14 of 19
Photos: All about asteroids
In
1908 in Tunguska, Siberia, scientists theorize an asteroid flattened
about 750 square miles (1,200 square kilometers) of forest in and around
the Podkamennaya Tunguska River in what is now Krasnoyarsk Krai,
Russia.
Hide Caption
15 of 19
Photos: All about asteroids
What else is up there? Is anyone watching? NASA's Near-Earth Object Program
is trying to track down all asteroids and comets that could threaten
Earth. NASA says 9,672 near-Earth objects have been discovered as of
February 5, 2013. Of these, 1,374 have been classified as Potentially
Hazardous Asteroids, or objects that could one day threaten Earth.
Hide Caption
16 of 19
Photos: All about asteroids
One
of the top asteroid-tracking scientists is Don Yeomans at the Jet
Propulsion Laboratory, which is managed by the California Institute of
Technology. Yeomans says every day, "Earth is pummeled by more than 100
tons of material that spewed off asteroids and comets." Fortunately,
most of the asteroid trash is tiny and it burns up when it hits the
atmosphere, creating meteors, or shooting stars. Yeomans says it's very
rare for big chunks of space litter to hit Earth's surface. Those chunks
are called meteorites.
Hide Caption
17 of 19
Photos: All about asteroids
Asteroids
and comets are popular fodder for Earth-ending science fiction movies.
Two of the biggest blockbusters came out in 1998: "Deep Impact" and
"Armageddon." (Walt Disney Studios) Others include "Meteorites!" (1998),
"Doomsday Rock" (1997), "Asteroid" (1997), "Meteor" (1979), and "A Fire
in the Sky" (1978). Can you name others?
Hide Caption
18 of 19
Photos: All about asteroids
Asteroid 1998 QE2 is about 3.75 million miles from Earth. The white dot is the moon, or satellite, orbiting the asteroid.
Hide Caption
19 of 19
Photos: All about asteroids
This
graphic shows asteroid 2016 HO3 orbiting Earth as the pair go around
the sun together. The asteroid was first spotted on April 27, 2016, by
the Pan-STARRS 1 asteroid survey telescope on Haleakala, Hawaii.
Hide Caption
1 of 19
Photos: All about asteroids
All about asteroids – This
graphic shows the track for asteroid 2004 BL86, which flew about
745,000 miles from Earth on January 26, 2015. That's about three times
as far away as the moon.
Hide Caption
2 of 19
Photos: All about asteroids
This
graphic shows the path Asteroid 2014 RC took as it passed Earth on
September 7, 2015. The space rock came within one-tenth the distance
from Earth to the moon.
Hide Caption
3 of 19
Photos: All about asteroids
NASA scientists used Earth-based radar to produce these sharp views of the asteroid designated "2014 HQ124" on June 8, 2014. NASA called the images "most detailed radar images of a near-Earth asteroid ever obtained."
Hide Caption
4 of 19
Photos: All about asteroids
The
Hubble Space Telescope snapped a series of images on September 10,
2013, revealing a never-before-seen sight: An asteroid that appeared to
have six comet-like tails.
Hide Caption
5 of 19
Photos: All about asteroids
A
diagram shows the orbit of an asteroid named 2013 TV135 (in blue),
which made headlines in September 2013 when it passed close by Earth.
The probability of it striking Earth one day stands at 1 in 63,000, and
even those odds are fading fast as scientists find out more about the
asteroid. It will most likely swing past our planet again in 2032,
according to NASA.
Hide Caption
6 of 19
Photos: All about asteroids
Asteroid
2012 DA14 made a record-close pass -- 17,100 miles -- by Earth on
February 15, 2013. Most asteroids are made of rocks, but some are metal.
They orbit mostly between Jupiter and Mars in the main asteroid belt.
Scientists estimate there are tens of thousands of asteroids and when
they get close to our planet, they are called near-Earth objects.
Hide Caption
7 of 19
Photos: All about asteroids
Another
asteroid, Apophis, got a lot of attention from space scientists and the
media when initial calculations indicated a small chance it could hit
Earth in 2029 or 2036. NASA scientists have since ruled out an impact,
but on April 13, 2029, Apophis, which is about the size of 3½ football
fields, will make a close visit -- flying about 19,400 miles (31,300
kilometers) above Earth's surface. The images above were taken by the
European Space Agency's Herschel Space Observatory in January 2013.
Hide Caption
8 of 19
Photos: All about asteroids
If
you really want to know about asteroids, you need to see one up close.
NASA did just that. A spacecraft called NEAR-Shoemaker, named in honor
of planetary scientist Gene Shoemaker, was the first probe to touch down
on an asteroid, landing on the asteroid Eros on February 12, 2001. This
image was taken on February 14, 2000, just after the probe began
orbiting Eros.
Hide Caption
9 of 19
Photos: All about asteroids
The
first asteroid to be identified, 1 Ceres, was discovered January 1,
1801, by Giuseppe Piazzi in Palermo, Sicily. But is Ceres just another
asteroid? Observations by NASA's Hubble Space Telescope show that Ceres
has a lot in common with planets like Earth. It's almost round and it
may have a lot of pure water ice beneath its surface. Ceres is about 606
by 565 miles (975 by 909 kilometers) in size and scientists say it may
be more accurate to call it a mini-planet. NASA's Dawn spacecraft is on
its way to Ceres to investigate. The spacecraft is 35 million miles (57
million kilometers) from Ceres and 179 million miles (288 million
kilometers) from Earth. The photo on the left was taken by Keck
Observatory, Mauna Kea, Hawaii. The image on the right was taken by the
Hubble Space Telescope.
Hide Caption
10 of 19
Story highlights
- Earth has an asteroid companion, but it's at least 9 million miles away
- The asteroid is less than 300 feet in diameter
(CNN)A small asteroid has been found circling Earth as the two objects orbit the sun together.
Scientists
say it looks like the asteroid -- called 2016 HO3 -- has been out there
for about 50 years and isn't going away anytime soon.
"Our
calculations indicate 2016 HO3 has been a stable quasi-satellite of
Earth for almost a century, and it will continue to follow this pattern
as Earth's companion for centuries to come," said Paul Chodas, manager
of NASA's Center for Near-Earth Object Studies.
Scientists think the asteroid is between 120 and 300 feet (37 to 91 meters) in diameter. It was found on April 27, 2016 by the Pan-STARRS 1 asteroid survey telescope in Haleakala, Hawaii.
The asteroid is not going to hit us -- NASA says it never gets closer than 9 million miles (14 million kilometers) from Earth.
So
does this mean Earth has another moon? NASA says that because the
asteroid is so far away it can't be considered a natural moon, or
satellite. Instead, they're calling it a "quasi-satellite."
"Since
2016 HO3 loops around our planet, but never ventures very far away as
we both go around the sun, we refer to it as a quasi-satellite of
Earth," said Chodas in an online press release.
Our moon, by the way, is about 239,000 miles (384,000 kilometers) from Earth. Its diameter is about 2,000 miles (3,219 kilometers).
This isn't the first time Earth has picked up an asteroid companion.
"One
other asteroid -- 2003 YN107 -- followed a similar orbital pattern for a
while over 10 years ago, but it has since departed our vicinity. This
new asteroid is much more locked onto us," Chodas said.
And some scientists think there could be other "mini-moons" orbiting the Earth -- some permanent and some temporary.
In 2012, researchers using a super computer concluded "that at any given time there should be at least one asteroid with a diameter of at least one meter orbiting Earth."
And there could be many smaller objects orbiting Earth as well.
NASA's Near Earth Object program keeps track of the objects we know about. And there's a Twitter account where you can follow along.
No comments:
Post a Comment