Tag

Asteroids

All articles tagged with #asteroids

science7 days ago•9 min saved

Nuking an Asteroid Might Break It Apart, Say New Simulations

New 3D simulations based on Bennu-like rocks show a 1-megaton nuclear blast detonated a few meters above a 160-meter asteroid could vaporize surface material with X-rays, driving ablation and momentum changes that may tear the rock apart or alter its trajectory. Interestingly, a slightly farther detonation sometimes produced more widespread damage, but long-term outcomes are uncertain and the simulations are extremely compute-intensive, highlighting both the potential and limits of nuclear mitigation for planetary defense.

via ScienceAlert|

#asteroids #nuclear-mitigation #planetary-defense

space21 days ago•11 min saved

Deep-Buried Nuclear Option Could Triple Asteroid Deflection, Simulations Find

A Chinese team’s computer simulations propose a two-step nuclear method: first a penetrator digs a hole in an asteroid, then a second craft places a 3-megaton bomb about 30 metres underground to detonate beneath the surface. The study finds this buried approach could more than triple the asteroid’s deflection compared with surface explosions, though it remains purely theoretical and faces legal, safety, and feasibility caveats. In practice, safer options like kinetic deflection are preferred, and nuclear interception would only be considered in dire, late-stage scenarios if ever tested in reality.

via Space Daily|

#asteroids #buried-detonation #nuclear-deflection

space1 month ago•104 min saved

Apophis: A naked-eye 2029 flyby set to beam across billions of skies

New maps project the potentially hazardous asteroid Apophis will perform a seven‑hour, ultra‑close flyby on April 13, 2029, passing about 19,000 miles from Earth and could be visible to up to 90% of the world’s population. At the start, as many as ~4.5 billion people might see it; peak visibility could reach ~5.7 billion across eastern Africa, Southern Europe, Australia, Asia and the Middle East; by the end, ~1.9 billion in eastern South America, northern Africa and parts of Europe. North America is expected to miss the clear view. It will appear as a modest, slow‑moving star, and there is zero chance of impact in the next 100 years, though the trajectory could shift slightly. Scientists will coordinate global observations, with missions like NASA’s OSIRIS‑APEX studying its structure; the event coincides with the UN’s International Year of Asteroid Awareness and Planetary Defence.

via Live Science|

#apophis #asteroids #astronomy

space1 month ago•106 min saved

China plots space-ground early-warning system for sunward asteroids

China's space agency announced plans to develop a coordinated space-ground asteroid early-warning network that would combine ground-based optical telescopes with a space-based observing constellation to detect near-Earth asteroids, especially those approaching from the sunward direction. The proposed architecture includes a basic model with a Sun-Earth L1 satellite plus northern and southern ground stations, and an extended model that adds Venus-like or distant retrograde orbits to improve sky coverage. The move aligns with China’s 15th Five-Year Plan, complements ongoing international efforts (e.g., NASA's DART, ESA's Hera), and emphasizes open data sharing and potential radar capabilities as gaps in current asteroid tracking persist. The development comes amid calls for stronger planetary defense and the upcoming International Year of Planetary Defense in 2029 and notable close approaches such as Apophis' flyby.

via Space|

#asteroids #cnsa #near-earth-objects

space-and-spaceflight1 month ago•16 min saved

Inside-Out Nukes: A New Plan to Stop Large Asteroids

Chinese researchers propose using a nuclear blast to destroy or rapidly deflect a large asteroid by carving a crater and detonating a warhead inside; their models favor a pre-excavation detonation for deep energy transfer, potentially making this approach more effective than surface-only hits for rocks around 100 meters in size and offering two defense modes: direct-impact detonation and pre-excavation detonation.

via Gizmodo|

#asteroid-impact #asteroids #nuclear-detonation

space1 month ago•103 min saved

China's Tianwen-2 Captures First Image of Kamo'oalewa, Earth's Quasi-Moon

China's Tianwen-2 asteroid-sampling mission released its first image of quasi-moon Kamo'oalewa (asteroid 2016 HO3), taken from about 20 km away on July 2, 2026. The spacecraft will study the object with 11 instruments for roughly a year before attempting a return sample to Earth. Kamo'oalewa, about 16–20 meters across, is a near-Earth quasi-satellite and may be material from the Moon formed by a past large impact Giordano Bruno; a sample could test that idea. Tianwen-2, launched in May 2025, marks China's first asteroid-sample mission, with future plans including Tianwen-3 (Mars sample return in 2028) and Tianwen-4 (Jupiter/Uranus study in 2030).

via Space|

#asteroids #quasi-satellite #sample-return

space1 month ago•4 min saved

Two asteroid rendezvous highlight a weekend of space feats by Japan and China

Two asteroid milestones dominated the weekend as Japan's Hayabusa2 performed a close flyby of the peanut-shaped asteroid Torifune during its extended mission, and China's Tianwen-2 arrived within about 20 km of the tiny near-Earth asteroid Kamo'oalewa to begin detailed study with a planned sample return in late 2027, while the mission also contemplates future targets such as 311P/PanSTARRS and a possible 2031 encounter with 1998 KY26 if all goes nominal.

via Ars Technica|

#asteroids #hayabusa2 #kamooalewa

science1 month ago•3 min saved

Eight Close Shaves: Near-Earth Asteroids That Skimmed Our Planet

Eight near-Earth asteroids have narrowly missed Earth in recent years, with distances from about 230 km (2025 UC11) to 9,900 km (2017 GM), including 2018 UA, 2019 UN13, 2020 VT4, 2021 UA1, 2022 FD1, and 2023 BU; the piece also notes a 2026 pass at 2.6 million km and a projected 2029 Apophis flyby at ~32,000 km, all in the context of historic events like Tunguska in 1908.

via Rediff|

#asteroids #close-approaches #nasa

space-and-spaceflight1 month ago•15 min saved

China Aims for First Asteroid Sample Return from Earth's Quasi-Moon

China’s Tianwen-2 spacecraft aims to rendezvous with near-Earth asteroid Kamo'oalewa, collect a small sample (20–100 mg) and return it to Earth by April 2027, potentially making it China’s first asteroid sample return; Kamo'oalewa is a quasi-satellite that may be Moon-origin rock, offering clues to the Moon’s early history, with the mission also planning a flyby of main-belt asteroid 311P/PANSTARRS in 2035.

via Gizmodo|

#asteroids #china #kamooalewa

science1 month ago•6 min saved

A Decade of Planetary Defense: Gains Made, But More Skywatching Is Needed

International Asteroid Day marks 10 years of progress in defending Earth from space rocks, with nearly 40,000 near-Earth objects identified and NASA's DART mission proving a redirect of an asteroid is possible. Yet experts warn we still lack enough telescopes to spot all threats; the upcoming Near-Earth Object Surveyor aims to detect two-thirds of potentially hazardous asteroids, as events like the 2029 Apophis close approach highlight the ongoing need for vigilant skywatching.

via ABC News - Breaking News, Latest News and Videos|

#asteroids #dart #near-earth-object-surveyor

space1 month ago•11 min saved

Lucy Spots Water Clues on a Tumbling Peanut-Shaped Asteroid

NASA’s Lucy mission found that the main-belt asteroid Donaldjohanson is a bilobed, peanut-shaped body with a complex tumbling rotation gradually altered by sunlight (the YORP effect). Close flyby data revealed iron-rich clays that formed in the presence of liquid water, suggesting water briefly existed on its parent body long ago. At about 155 million years old, Donaldjohanson is younger than Bennu and Ryugu and has stayed in the main belt, offering a contrast as Lucy heads toward studying Jupiter’s Trojan asteroids, starting with Eurybates in 2027.

via SciTechDaily|

#asteroids #lucy-mission #nasa

science1 month ago•2 min saved

Empire State–sized asteroid to skim past Earth this weekend

A 0.75–1.65 km-wide asteroid named 1997 NC1 will pass about 1.6 million miles (2.6 million km) from Earth on Saturday, posing no danger; discovered in Hawaii, it may be visible with binoculars and won’t come this close again until 2133, per NASA/ESA trajectory tracking.

via New York Post|

#asteroids #astronomy #esa

science2 months ago•4 min saved

Ryugu Holds All Five Nucleobases, Hinting Cosmic Origins of Life

A Nature Astronomy study confirms Ryugu samples contain all five canonical nucleobases (adenine, guanine, cytosine, thymine, uracil), suggesting life's genetic ingredients formed in space and were delivered to early Earth; findings align with results from Bennu and meteorites, though purine/pyrimidine balance varies by asteroid.

via SciTechDaily|

#asteroids #hayabusa2 #nucleobases

space-exploration3 months ago•73 min saved

New math cuts fuel and time for multi-asteroid missions

Researchers reframed visiting multiple moving asteroids as the Asteroid Routing Problem and used Decision Diagrams to optimize inter-asteroid paths, solving Lambert’s problem more efficiently and delivering about 20% improvements in travel time and fuel; the method could aid missions like Lucy and Dawn and even terrestrial routing.

via Space|

#asteroids #lambert-problem #mission-planning

space-and-spaceflight3 months ago•15 min saved

Live Flyby: House-Sized Asteroid 2026 JH2 Skims Past Earth

Asteroid 2026 JH2, roughly 14–30 meters across, will pass within about 57,000 miles (92,000 km) of Earth today—closer than a quarter of the Moon’s distance. It poses no threat, but scientists will use the Virtual Telescope Project 2.0 livestream to study its orbit and physical properties as it whizzes by, with closest approach around 5:58 p.m. ET. The rock completes an orbit around the Sun every 3.76 years; the next close pass won’t occur until 2090.

via Gizmodo|

#asteroids #astronomy #earth