asteroid

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NASA Has Successfully Nudged an Asteroid
NASA Did a Number
On the Asteroid It Hit
UPDATED
Mar 20, 2024 9:55 AM CDT

NASA Did a Number On the Asteroid It Hit

Dimorphos' shape was changed, in addition to its orbit time, a new study finds

(Newser) - It's safe to say NASA's test of whether an asteroid could be nudged off a collision path with Earth was a success. The DART spacecraft's impact with the asteroid Dimorphos not only shaved 33 minutes and 15 seconds off the time it takes to circle its parent...

NASA Hits the Jackpot on Its 'Rubble Return Goal'

OSIRIS-REx spacecraft returned double the expected samples from asteroid Bennu

(Newser) - NASA finally has counted up all the asteroid samples returned by a spacecraft last fall—and it's double the rubble return goal. Officials reported Thursday that the Osiris-Rex spacecraft collected 4.29 ounces of dust and pebbles from asteroid Bennu. That's just over half a cup and the...

Asteroid Size of Empire State Building Is About to Fly By Earth

2008 OS7 will come within 1.7M miles of our planet on Friday, though experts assure that it won't hit us

(Newser) - An asteroid as big as a skyscraper will pass within 1.7 million miles of Earth on Friday. But it's not on a collision course with us, as it will pass seven times the distance from Earth to the moon, per the AP . NASA's Center for Near-Earth Object...

NASA Finally Unlocks Its Asteroid Sample
OSIRIS-REx Reveals
a 'Treasure Trove'
Jan 24, 2024 12:51 PM CST

OSIRIS-REx Reveals a 'Treasure Trove'

NASA finally unlocks long-sought asteroid sample, with some decent-sized rocks

(Newser) - After months of painstaking effort, the last two screws have finally been removed from the end of OSIRIS-REx's articulated arm, which grabbed a sample of the near-Earth asteroid Bennu as part of a $1 billion NASA mission, allowing scientists to look inside. They found a "treasure trove of...

The Impact Boiled the Ocean. But It Wasn't All Bad
The Impact Boiled the Ocean.
But It Wasn't All Bad
in case you missed it
Dec 24, 2023 7:39 AM CST

The Impact Boiled the Ocean. But It Wasn't All Bad

Scientists believe S2 impact held some benefits for early life 3.26B years ago

(Newser) - Billions of years before a smaller asteroid slammed Earth, triggering a global blackout that would wipe out the dinosaurs, a rock four times the size of Mount Everest made an even bigger splash. Researchers have long known about the impact, dubbed S2, which occurred 3.26 billion years ago, based...

NASA's Surprise Find: This Asteroid's 'Dinky Sidekick'

Lucy spacecraft discovers 'mini moon' during flyby of Dinkinesh space hunk

(Newser) - The little asteroid visited by NASA's Lucy spacecraft this week had a big surprise for scientists. It turns out that the asteroid Dinkinesh has a dinky sidekick—a mini moon. The discovery was made during Wednesday's flyby of Dinkinesh, 300 million miles away in the main asteroid belt...

First to Suffer From Asteroid That Doomed Dinos: Plants

Dust particles in atmosphere shut down photosynthesis for 2 years: researchers

(Newser) - It wasn't so much the asteroid impact that killed 75% of the species on Earth some 66 million years ago, but the fact that, for the following two years, little, if anything, could grow. That's according to research offering the first in-depth study of dust particles thrown into...

OSIRIS-REx Is Jammed
OSIRIS-REx Is Jammed
Oct 24, 2023 8:17 AM CDT

OSIRIS-REx Is Jammed

NASA struggles to open container holding large sample from asteroid Bennu

(Newser) - OSIRIS-REx delivered the largest-ever asteroid sample to Earth, with a major catch. The container holding the sample from the near-Earth asteroid Bennu can't be opened. Teams at NASA's Johnson Space Center have been trying to open the round head at the end of OSIRIS-REx's articulated arm, called...

Chunk of Asteroid That Could Take Chunk Out of Earth Nears

OSIRIS-REx's sample from near-Earth asteroid Bennu to arrive in Utah on Sunday

(Newser) - There's a 1 in 2,700 chance that an asteroid known for its close flybys of Earth could smack into the planet in the next 160 years or so, which isn't very reassuring. NASA hopes, however, that the upcoming conclusion of a seven-year mission to retrieve samples from...

You Might Be Able to Glimpse This Asteroid

It's zipping by us, and even amateurs might spot 2023 DZ2 Friday night or Saturday

(Newser) - An asteroid big enough to wipe out a city will zip between Earth and the moon's orbit on Saturday, reports the AP . The close encounter will offer astronomers the chance to study a space rock from just over 100,000 miles away—that’s less than half the distance...

Asteroid Has a Small Chance of Hitting Earth on Feb. 14, 2046

NASA says DB 2023 isn't 'particularly concerning'

(Newser) - There's a very small but real chance that a space rock could ruin a lot of romantic evenings 23 years from now, according to NASA's Planetary Defense Office. The newly discovered asteroid, DB 2023, has a 1 in 560 chance of hitting Earth on Valentine's Day 2046,...

Close Encounter With Earth Changes Asteroid's Orbit

2023 BU came 'extraordinarily close' to our planet

(Newser) - The asteroid 2023 BU came very close to Earth Thursday evening, coming 10 times closer than many satellites. At its closest, at 7:27pm Eastern, it was 2,200 miles over the southern tip of South America, which "counts as a close shave," the BBC reports. But even...

Possible 'Planet Killer' Asteroid Found in Earth's Orbital Path

Future generations will want to keep an eye on it

(Newser) - Astronomers have discovered a new asteroid in our neighborhood: it's more than a mile wide, and its orbit around the sun crosses the Earth’s path, making it a potential "planet killer," according to a New York Times report on the rock known as 2022 APY. Not...

Here's Visual Proof That Our Asteroid Slam Worked

DART's collision with Dimorphos asteroid confirmed by 6.2K-mile-long debris trail

(Newser) - Astronomers know for certain that NASA's DART spacecraft slammed into a distant asteroid in a test of whether Earth-threatening space rocks might be diverted, because that asteroid is spewing a whole lot of rock and dust. Two days after the Sept. 26 Double Asteroid Redirection Test, a telescope in...

NASA Craft Zeroing In on Unsuspecting Asteroid
Asteroid-Slamming Mission
Is a Hit for NASA
updated
Sep 26, 2022 6:57 PM CDT

Asteroid-Slamming Mission Is a Hit for NASA

Stakes of the test are high, NASA administrator says

(Newser) - Update: The NASA spacecraft DART intentionally slammed into the asteroid Dimorphos at 14,000mph on Monday. It could be weeks, however, before NASA knows how much the impact changed the path of the asteroid, the AP reports. Telescopes on Earth and in space were pointed at the spot in anticipation;...

How to Watch Monday's Collision With Asteroid

NASA will be live-streaming the deliberate smash in the evening

(Newser) - It's not every day you get to watch a spacecraft smash into an asteroid , but Monday just happens to be one. In fact, the impact is expected to occur at precisely 7:14pm Eastern, and it will be streamed at NASA Live . Outlets including Space.com and CNET also...

Dino-Killing Asteroid May Have Had a Friend
Dinosaur-Killing Asteroid
May Have Had a Friend
NEW STUDY
Aug 18, 2022 7:30 PM CDT

Dinosaur-Killing Asteroid May Have Had a Friend

Fossils suggest 5-mile-wide crater off West Africa is also 66M years old

(Newser) - The 6-mile-wide asteroid that wiped out the dinosaurs 66 million years ago may have had a baby cousin that struck on the opposite side of the Atlantic Ocean. Dr. Uisdean Nicholson of Scotland's Heriot-Watt University discovered a hidden depression of a similar age as the Chicxulub Crater in Mexico...

This Week Brings Biggest Asteroid Flyby of the Year

Those with telescopes may be able to see 7335

(Newser) - Sky watchers of the professional and amateur varieties are keeping an eye on the heavens this week to spot a giant asteroid zipping by. The rock dubbed 7335 (1989 JA) will be closest to Earth on Friday, reports Live Science . This one just happens to be the largest asteroid expected...

NASA: Fireball Over South Was 10 Times Brighter Than Moon

Chunk of asteroid exploded over Louisiana

(Newser) - NASA has confirmed that a fireball seen over three Southern states this week was a piece of an asteroid around a foot across that exploded 34 miles above a swampy area in Louisiana. The agency says around 30 people in Mississippi, Arkansas, and Louisiana reported sightings. The meteor, which weighed...

Scientist: This Dinosaur Died on the Day of Asteroid Strike

Leg was among many finds at North Dakota site that preserved the 'death blow'

(Newser) - The asteroid that hit the Earth around 66 million years ago brought an abrupt end to the Cretaceous period—and to the life of a Thescelosaurus dinosaur whose incredibly well-preserved leg was found at a North Dakota site. Researchers say they can pinpoint the day of the dinosaur's death...

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