“Potentially hazardous asteroids, or PHAs, are a subset of the larger group of near-Earth asteroids. The PHAs have the closest orbits to Earth’s, coming within five million miles, and they are big enough to survive passing through Earth’s atmosphere and cause damage on a regional, or greater, scale.” Quoted from the NASA press release.
“Dawn’s residence at Vesta of nearly a year has made the asteroid’s planet-like qualities obvious and shown us our connection to that bright orb in our night sky. [...] Scientists now see Vesta as a layered, planetary building block with an iron core – the only one known to survive the earliest days of the solar system.” Quoted from the NASA press release.
“The Ouarkziz Impact Crater is located in northwestern Algeria, close to the border with Morocco. The crater was formed by a meteor impact less than 70 million years ago, during the late Cretaceous Period of the Mesozoic Era, or Age of Dinosaurs.” Quoted from the Earth Observatory image release.
Fragments thought to be part of the fireball that was seen in daylight by people from Las Vegas to San Francisco have been found near Lotus California.
This article: “How asteroidmining could turn billionaires into trillionaires” includes a video interview with Neil Degrasse Tyson, Director of New York’s Hayden Planetarium.
“Planetary Resources, Inc. announced today its plan to mine Near-Earth Asteroids for raw materials [...]. There are over 1,500 asteroids that are as easy to get to as the surface of the Moon. They are also in Earth-like orbits with small gravity fields, making them easier to approach and depart. [...] A single 500-meter platinum-rich asteroid contains the equivalent of all the Platinum Group Metals mined in history.” Quoted from the Planetary Resources website.
A small asteroid about the size of a minivan is thought to be responsible for a sonic boom that was heard by millions of people in California and Nevada.
“Asteroid 2011 AG5 has been receiving a lot of attention lately because of a very unlikely scenario which would place it on an Earth-interception course 28 years from now. Here is a scientific reality check of this relatively nondescript space rock which is currently ranked a “1″ on the 1 to 10 Torino Impact Hazard Scale.” Quote from the NASA press release.
“Unexpected new findings by a University of Maryland team of geochemists show that some portions of the Earth’s mantle (the rocky layer between Earth’s metallic core and crust) formed when the planet was much smaller than it is now.” Quoted from the University of Maryland press release.
“Meteorites hold a record of the chemicals that existed in the early Solar System and that may have been a crucial source of the organic compounds that gave rise to life on Earth.” Quoted from the Carnegie Institution for Science press release.
An asteroid measuring somewhere between 20 and 60 feet in diameter came within 37,000 miles of hitting the Earth – that’s about 1/6 of the distance between Earth and Moon.
In July, 2011 a meteor broke-up during its descent through Earth’s atmosphere, dropping debris on the Moroccan desert. Fragments of the meteorite were recovered and NASA has confirmed that they are fragments of Mars.
“When a meteorite careens toward the dusty surface of the Red Planet, it kicks up dust and can cause avalanching even before the rock from outer space hits the ground…” Quoted from the University of Arizona press release.
NASA has a gallery of low altitude images of the Vesta Asteroid. The collection also includes a terrain model of Vesta’s southern hemisphere. This part of Vesta has a large circular basin about 300 miles (500 kilometers) in diameter. It’s rim is elevated about 9 miles (15 kilometers) above the basin center.
An article on the SignOnSanDiego.com website explains what Earth might have been like during the extinction that occurred at the end of the Permian which wiped out most of Earth’s species.
On Tuesday, November 8th, Asteroid 2005 YU55 will pass within 0.85 lunar units of the Earth – that means it will pass between the moon and the earth. NASA’s comments… “Although classified as a potentially hazardous object, 2005 YU55 poses no threat of an Earth collision over at least the next 100 years. However, this will be the closest approach to date by an object this large that we know about in advance and an event of this type will not happen again until 2028 when asteroid (153814) 2001 WN5 will pass to within 0.6 lunar distances.”
Princeton University researchers have produced a model of how seismic waves would spread across and within the Earth after the impact of a giant meteorite.
October is one of the busiest months for meteor showers and NASA’s All-Sky camera was very busy one night capturing meteors from five different showers.
Spitzer Space Telescope has detected a storm of comets around a star named Eta Corvi. It is thought to be an environment similar to the “late heavy bombardment” period of our own solar system.
“By analyzing carbonate minerals in a four-billion-year-old meteorite that originated near the surface of Mars, the scientists determined that the minerals formed at about 18 degrees Celsius (64 degrees Fahrenheit).”
“A new image from NASA’s Dawn spacecraft shows a mountain three times as high as Mt. Everest, amidst the topography in the south polar region of the giant asteroid Vesta.” Quoted from the NASA news release.
“Analysis of fragments of the Almahata Sitta meteorite, which landed in Sudan in 2008, has shown that the parent asteroid was probably formed through collisions of three different types of asteroids. ” Quoted from the Europlanet Research Infrastructure press release.
Field investigations have confirmed that the Luizi Structure in the Democratic Republic of Congo is an impact structure. For detailed evidence see the paper by Ferriere and others.
“At approximately five million years old, Bigach is a relatively young geologic feature. However, active tectonic processes in the region have caused movement of parts of the structure along faults, leading to a somewhat angular appearance.” Quoted from the Earth Observatory image release.
“New observations by NASA [...] show there are significantly fewer near-Earth asteroids in the mid-size range than previously thought. The findings also indicate NASA has found more than 90 percent of the largest near-Earth asteroids, meeting a goal agreed to with Congress in 1998.” Quoted from the NASA press release.
The new issue of Lite Geology by the New Mexico Bureau of Geology and Mineral Resources has an interesting article titled: “Ancient Tsunamis from Meteorite Impacts”.
“Observations from NASA’s Wide-field Infrared Survey Explorer mission indicate the family of asteroids some believed was responsible for the demise of the dinosaurs is not likely the culprit.” Quoted from the NASA press release.
“In the center of the Democratic Republic of Congo, the Unia River flows around a circular structure known as the Wembo-Nyama feature. Several things in nature leave a circular footprint such as this, including volcanoes and uplifted domes. However, Italian scientists from the University of Padova believe that the Wembo-Nyama feature is an impact crater.” Quoted from the NASA image release.
“This image obtained by the framing camera on NASA’s Dawn spacecraft shows the south pole of the giant asteroid Vesta. Scientists are discussing whether the circular structure that covers most of this image originated by a collision with another asteroid, or by internal processes early in the asteroid’s history.” Quote from the NASA press release.
The Upper Atmosphere Research Satellite is expected to break into 26 pieces as it falls into Earth’s atmosphere – most likely on Friday, September 23rd. CBS News has an article that describes what might happen as the satellite approaches Earth.
“Millbillillie meteorites are volcanic rock from other worlds, and are comprised largely of silicate minerals. [...] Some meteoriticists believe that the HED group meteorites may have come to us from the large asteroid Vesta” Quoted from the Meteorite Blog. This article has some great photos.
Also known as “Meteor Crater”, Barringer Impact Crater, located near Winslow, Arizona is one of Earth’s best preserved impact craters. This virtual tour will take you around the rim and down into the bottom of the crater.
“Ultra high precision analyses of some of the oldest rock samples on Earth by researchers at the University of Bristol provides clear evidence that the planet’s accessible reserves of precious metals are the result of a bombardment of meteorites more than 200 million years after the Earth was formed.” Quoted from the University of Bristol news release.
“The February, 1947 fall of the Sikhote-Alin iron in a remote part of eastern Siberia was, by far, the largest recorded meteorite event in history.” Quoted from MeteoriteBlog.org. (great photos!)
The Los Angeles Times has an interview with Donald J. Kessler, an orbital debris researcher. He answers some of the most commonly-asked questions about space junk.
NASA has a small collection of computer-generated images that represent “maps” of objects in Earth orbit that are currently being tracked. Nearly all of the objects are orbital debris and not functional satellites. The image here is an oblique view of Earth showing a large number of mostly Russian objects in high-inclination orbit.
“For reasons researchers do not understand, the rate of midnight fireballs increases during the weeks around the vernal equinox. It’s a beautiful display, but where do they come from? NASA’s growing network of fireball cameras is scanning the heavens for answers.”
“After a journey of almost three years, NASA’s Mars Exploration Rover Opportunity has reached the Red Planet’s Endeavour crater to study rocks never seen before.” The crater shown in the image at right is a small impact site known as “Skylab Crater”. Quote from the NASA press release.
Although conditions in the United States are not optimal for observing the Perseid Meteor Shower this year because of a nearly full moon, you still have a great chance of seeing a few meteors on August 12 and 13.
“NASA-funded researchers have evidence that some building blocks of DNA, the molecule that carries the genetic instructions for life, found in meteorites were likely created in space.” Quoted from the NASA press release.
The far side of the moon has a very mountainous topography and a very different crustal composition than the lunar near side. These differences may have been produced with a small companion moon was accreted in a low-velocity impact.
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