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Post by skywalker on Mar 5, 2012 21:43:20 GMT -6
They are going to confront it with paint? What the heck good would that do?
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Post by swamprat on Mar 6, 2012 7:49:00 GMT -6
Some scientists feel that painting the object with a reflective paint would result in the sunlight altering the trajectory.
“Paint would affect the asteroid’s ability to reflect sunlight, changing its temperature and altering its spin. The asteroid would stalk off its current course, but this could also make the boulder even more dangerous when it comes back in 2056, Aleksandr Devaytkin, the head of the observatory in Russia’s Pulkovo, told Izvestia.”
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Post by skywalker on Mar 6, 2012 8:45:10 GMT -6
You have got to be kidding me. They are seriously thinking about painting a 200 foot wide rock that's going 20,000 miles per hour? Even Van Gogh wasn't that crazy. This reminds me of the idea the environmentalists came up with to stop global cooling back in the 70s. They wanted to cover all of the polar ice caps with coal dust so that the dark color would absorb the heat from the sun and melt the ice so we would continue to have liquid water. I kid you not. I guess they never thought about what would happen after they got through dumping gazillions of tons of black soot all over the pristine arctic wilderness only to find out that as soon as it snowed again it would all be covered up with snow. Or how about if the soot actually did melt the snow? Wouldn't we then have a bunch of black sooty rivers flowing black mud all over the place? And this brilliant scheme came from environmentalists? Luckily for all of us "global warming" started occurring a few years later and eliminated the need for them to dump black garbage all over the Earth to put an end to "global cooling." If thses are the same clowns wanting to paint the giant space rock they would probably end up sending it straight towards us. I think I would feel better just leaaving the asteroid like it is and taking my chances with it. I would rather put my life in the hands of God than a bunch of crazy environmentalists.
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Post by auntym on Apr 1, 2012 12:06:50 GMT -6
www.space.com/15121-april-fools-day-asteroid-earth-flyby.html?utm_content=SPACEdotcom&utm_campaign=seo%2Bblitz&utm_source=twitter.com&utm_medium=social%2Bmedia April Fools' Day Asteroid Zips Close by Earth[/color] by Tariq Malik, SPACE.com Managing Editor Date: 31 March 2012 This story was updated at 10:18 a.m. ET. An asteroid the size of a passenger jet zoomed near the Earth Sunday (April 1), just in time for April Fools' Day, but the space rock flyby posed no threat of hitting our planet, NASA officials said. The asteroid 2012 EG5 was closer than the moon when it flew by Earth at 5:32 a.m. EDT (0932 GMT). The space rock is about 150 feet wide (46 meters), according to a NASA records. Scientists with the space agency announced the April Fools' asteroid flyby on Friday, March 30. "Asteroid 2012 EG5 will safely pass Earth on April 1," scientists with NASA's Asteroid Watch program at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif., wrote in a Twitter statement. The space rock may have visited Earth on April Fools' Day, but its flyby was no prank. The asteroid crept within 143,000 miles (230,000 kilometers) of Earth during its closest approach, which is just over half the distance between Earth and the moon's orbit. The moon typically circles the Earth at a distance of 238,000 miles (382,900 km). Asteroid 2012 EG5 was the third relatively small asteroid to buzz the Earth in seven days. Two smaller asteroids passed near Earth on Monday (March 26). Early Monday, the bus-size asteroid 2012 FP35 came within 96,000 miles (154,000 km) of Earth. It was followed a few hours later by asteroid 2012 FS35, which is the size of a car and passed Earth at a range of 36,000 miles (58,000 km). Like asteroid 2012 EG5, those two smaller space rocks on Monday posed no risk of hitting Earth. Those space rocks were so small they would not survive the trip through Earth's atmosphere, even if they were aimed at our planet, Asteroid Watch researchers said. Asteroid 2012 EG5 was discovered on March 13 by astronomers searching for near-Earth space rocks. Another space rock, the asteroid 2012 FA57, was discovered on March 28 and will fly by Earth on April 4 when it passes at a range just beyond the orbit of the moon. CONTINUE READING: www.space.com/15121-april-fools-day-asteroid-earth-flyby.html?utm_content=SPACEdotcom&utm_campaign=seo%2Bblitz&utm_source=twitter.com&utm_medium=social%2Bmedia
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Post by swamprat on Apr 26, 2012 20:01:00 GMT -6
Here you go, Sky! Looking to reboot your life?A new asteroid mining venture backed by Silicon Valley titans and filmmaker James Cameron is hiring. Planetary Resources, Inc., announced Tuesday at a news conference in Seattle that it wants to mine near-Earth asteroids for water and precious metals like gold and platinum within the next 10 years if all goes as planned. And the brand-new company is looking for a helping hand. "Since my early teenage years, I've wanted to be an asteroid miner. I always viewed it as a glamorous vision of where we could go," company founder Peter Diamandis told reporters at the Museum of Flight in Seattle. Diamandis hopes others share his passion for space exploration: The company website is now accepting applications for a “few good asteroid miners,” to help the firm find new ways to “explore space beyond Earth orbit.” Company representatives did not respond to FoxNews.com requests for specific job details, such as how much an asteroid miner will earn or what qualifies one for such an out-of-this-world job. But one insider familiar with the company's plans doubts they're looking for miners at all. "They aren't hiring asteroid miners," he told FoxNews.com. "They're hiring aerospace engineers to design a low-Earth orbit micro-satellite space telescope to look for asteroids." More information can be gleaned from the site, where prospective applicants must fill out a litany of short-answer questions proving their love for space, describing their soldering skills and even proffering the name they’d give to a hypothetical crash dummy. Several scientists not involved with the project said they were simultaneously thrilled and wary, calling the plan daring, difficult -- and very pricey. They don't see how it could be cost-effective, even with platinum and gold worth nearly $1,600 an ounce. An upcoming NASA mission to return just 2 ounces (60 grams) of an asteroid to Earth will cost about $1 billion. But the entrepreneurs behind Planetary Resources have a track record of profiting off space ventures. Diamandis and co-founder Eric Anderson pioneered the idea of selling rides into space to tourists, and Diamandis' company offers "weightless" airplane flights. Investors and advisers to the new company include Google CEO Larry Page and Executive Chairman Eric Schmidt and Cameron, the man behind the blockbusters "Titanic" and "Avatar." "The pursuit of resources drove the discovery of America and opened the West," Schmidt said in a statement on the site. "The same drivers still hold true for opening the space frontier." Anderson says the group will prove naysayers wrong. "Before we started launching people into space as private citizens, people thought that was a pie-in-the-sky idea," Anderson said. "We're in this for decades.” For those serious about a career in space mining, Planetary Resources said it has "immediate needs" in the following areas: 1) guidance, navigation, and control; 2) flight and ground software; and 3) optical and laser systems.” But remember, mining asteroids is no walk in the park. “You will get your hands dirty,” the site warns. “If you prefer your hands clean, go somewhere else.” Click here to apply: www.planetaryresources.com/careers/Read more: www.foxnews.com/scitech/2012/04/26/james-cameron-backed-space-venture-seeks-asteroid-miners/#ixzz1tCY7gLaZ
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Post by ufo4peace on Apr 26, 2012 20:42:04 GMT -6
Bad joke alert.
Hi, I'm an *bleep*. I'm interested in probing asteroids. You're hired.
edit - spelling
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Post by Deleted on Apr 27, 2012 0:20:51 GMT -6
Same man who just took a sub into the Marianas trench and has spent hours at the Titanic site (as well as directing the movie). If anyone can mine asteroids..he can
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Post by Deleted on Apr 27, 2012 0:31:03 GMT -6
Same man who just took a sub into the Marianas trench and has spent hours at the Titanic site (as well as directing the movie). If anyone can mine asteroids..he can That's a good idea Jo.
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Post by auntym on May 15, 2012 11:45:45 GMT -6
www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2144599/Asteroid-2012-JU-hurtles-past-Earth-coming-closer-planet-moon.html Disaster avoided by an astronomical whisker: Bus-sized asteroid hurtles past our planet, coming closer to us than the moon[/color] By Eddie Wrenn PUBLISHED: 15 May 2012 The bus ride lasts 3.2 years, which sounds a bit dull, but it is always exciting when it drives by Planet Earth. Asteroid 2012 JU passed within 119,000 miles of our planet on Sunday night, just a whisker away from us in astronomical terms. Indeed, the bus-sized rock came closer to us than the moon does, with our celestial partner spinning around us at a distance of 238,000 miles. Luckily, we were never in any danger from the 12-metre wide asteroid, but it is another reminder of the risk we face from these remnants of the solar system's early days. Next stop Jupiter: Asteroid 2012 JU buzzed the Earth this week, and now it will venture off into space on an orbit which takes it almost as far as Jupiter's orbit before turning back to the inner solar system (file picture) See an animation of Asteroid 2012 JU at the NASA Near-Earth Orbit Programme (requires Java). After its brief fly-by of our planet, allowing any space aliens on a Greyhound tour to take their space-photos of our little blue marble, the asteroid heads out towards the orbit of Jupiter. Then the sun's gravity pulls it back towards to centre of our solar system, and it sweeps round on another tour of the inner planets. Earth gets asteroid fly-bys all the time from asteroids, with the NASA researchers doing their best to track as many as possible. They are currently tracking 8,900 near-Earth asteroids, hoping to spot any threats to our planet before they arrive, like the asteroid which wiped out the dinosaurs 65million years ago. CONTINUE READING: www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2144599/Asteroid-2012-JU-hurtles-past-Earth-coming-closer-planet-moon.html#ixzz1uxfKc8wJ
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Post by skywalker on May 15, 2012 19:19:04 GMT -6
It seems like we have been having more and more close ones lately. Or maybe it just seems that way because we are now able to track more of them.
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Post by Deleted on May 15, 2012 22:41:02 GMT -6
No..I think there are more.. amateur astronomers have always been able to see them in the past and it just seems like they're coming closer..or we are..something seems to have changed
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Post by skywalker on May 16, 2012 19:25:19 GMT -6
There's been lots of heavy duty solar activity lately too. I wonder if the two are related somehow?
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Post by Deleted on May 17, 2012 10:08:37 GMT -6
Now there's a thought..
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Post by skywalker on May 17, 2012 10:45:27 GMT -6
I wonder if the increased solar activity from the sun could be causing some of the comets to melt and lose some of the rocks and stuff that's stuck in them. That last comet that got too close to the sun melted. Maybe the increased number of near earth asteroids are the leftover remains of that.
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Post by Deleted on May 17, 2012 12:31:24 GMT -6
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Post by skywalker on May 17, 2012 19:41:05 GMT -6
I wonder how close one would have to come for it to be grabbed by the Earth's gravity and pulled in? I suppose it would depend on how fast it was going and the angle it was coming at. We have had several big meteors that have come just within the moon but the moon is still a pretty good distance away.
Another thing I wonder is if they would tell us if there was a big asteroid coming towards us? There was one that exploded over California just a little while ago and nobody said a word about it beforehand. They claim that it wasn't detected but is that the truth or did they just not want to cause anybody to panic. Maybe they knew about it and were just hoping it would explode before it hit the ground.
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Post by Deleted on May 17, 2012 20:29:39 GMT -6
Something large enough to make it that far and it wasn't detected?? Yep..that would be our gov.
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Post by auntym on May 18, 2012 14:34:37 GMT -6
news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2012/05/120517-asteroid-close-earth-satellites-danger-space-science/?source=link_tw20120518news-asteroidsatellite Approaching Asteroid May Get Close Enough to Smash Satellites[/color] Newfound space rock will buzz Earth in February, astronomers report.
Richard A. Lovett for National Geographic News Published May 17, 2012 A newly discovered asteroid called 2012 DA14 will pass so close to Earth in February that it might hit a communications satellite, scientists say. "That's very unlikely, but we can't rule it out," said Paul Chodas, a planetary astronomer at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Pasadena, California. Discovered several weeks ago by astronomers at the LaSagra Observatory in Spain, www.minorplanets.org/OLS/ the asteroid is currently "a fuzzy little blob," as seen through telescopes, said Steven Chesley, also at JPL. Astronomers estimate that the space rock is just 150 feet (45 meters) wide. But "the orbit for 2012 DA14 is currently very Earthlike, which means it will be very close to Earth on a regular basis," Chodas said. Based on current projections, the asteroid could swing close enough to our planet to disrupt some orbiting satellites on February 15, 2013. The International Space Station, circling the planet in low-Earth orbit (about 1,200 miles/2,000 kilometers up, or closer), is in no danger, Chodas said. (Find out about an asteroid that crossed between Earth and the moon last June.) news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2011/06/110627-asteroid-earth-close-pass-weiss-moon-space-science/However, the newfound object's orbital path is still being refined. "We don't know exactly where it is, and that uncertainty maps through to an uncertainty in the orbit and predictions," Chesley said. For now, the astronomers aren't worried about the asteroid actually falling from the skies next winter. Instead, 2012 DA14 could put on a show for sky-watchers as it zips past the planet. "It might be visible to people with good binoculars or a small telescope," Chodas said. "For such a small object, that's really unusual." Asteroid to Eventually Hit Earth? NASA currently estimates that the likelihood of 2012 DA14 striking Earth anytime in the next several decades is 0.031 percent—a figure that will be refined after astronomers collect data on its close pass next February. But considering the uncertainty, scientists can't rule out the possibility that the asteroid might hit Earth on a subsequent pass, including the next flyby in 2020. Figuring out the risk will depend on precisely how close 2012 DA14 comes to Earth in February. That's because the closer it comes, the more the pull of Earth's gravity will change the asteroid's orbit, adding to the uncertainty of the predictions. CONTINUE READING: news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2012/05/120517-asteroid-close-earth-satellites-danger-space-science/?source=link_tw20120518news-asteroidsatellite
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Post by auntym on Jun 8, 2012 18:14:29 GMT -6
www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/06/08/asteroid-warning-system-report-catastrophe_n_1580371.htmlAsteroid Warning System: Report Calls For International Effort To Avert Possible CatastrophePosted: 06/08/2012 By: Mike Wall Published: 06/08/2012 06:58 AM EDT on SPACE.com The nations of the world need to work together to develop a warning and communication system that could mitigate the worst effects of a catastrophic asteroid strike, a new report stresses. Such a system would issue international warnings about possible impending strikes and educate the public about the threats posed by near-Earth objects. It also would call government leaders' and the public's attention to the scientific value and potential economic importance of asteroids. Coming up with international guidelines of this sort would not be easy, since nothing of its kind has been done before, write the authors of the report, which was issued by the nonprofit Secure World Foundation. "Today no worldwide disaster-notification protocol of any kind exists. The closest analogy might be the cooperative early-warning system developed for tsunamis in the wake of the devastating inundation of the coasts of Southeast Asia in 2004," the report states. It is being presented this week to the United Nations Committee on the Peaceful Uses of Outer Space during a conference in Vienna. [Natural Disasters: Top 10 U.S. Threats] Planting the seedThe report's authors recommend using social media and television to raise public consciousness of NEOs and the threat they pose. For example, they advise enlisting the help of weather forecasters. "Meteorologists in some countries already present astronomical information (e.g., meteor showers, space station sightings), as well as information on pollen and ultraviolet exposure indexes to their viewers," the report notes. "If they could also be enlisted to provide details of close-approaching NEOs as they occur, the general public could become more attuned to the terminology used by NEO specialists." The authors acknowledge that it will be a challenge for any warning system to convey to the public the uncertainty surrounding any particular NEO threat. A potential impact might be years down the road, and its probability is likely to be revised as scientists make more and more observations. The report further stresses that the IAWN's educational campaign shouldn't be all doom and gloom. Rather, it should also highlight the scientific importance of NEOs — ancient objects that could reveal insights about the solar system's birth — as well as their potential economic value. SEE VIDEO & CONTINUE READING: www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/06/08/asteroid-warning-system-report-catastrophe_n_1580371.html
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Post by swamprat on Jun 13, 2012 20:22:07 GMT -6
Huge Asteroid to Fly by Earth Thursday: How to Watch Onlineby Mike Wall, SPACE.com Senior Writer Date: 13 June 2012 An asteroid the size of a city block is set to fly by Earth Thursday (June 14), and you may be able to watch it happen live. The near-Earth asteroid 2012 LZ1, which astronomers think is about 1,650 feet (500 meters) wide, will come within 14 lunar distances of Earth Thursday evening. While there's no danger of an impact on this pass, the huge space rock may come close enough to be caught on camera. That's what the team running the Slooh Space Camera thinks, anyway. The online skywatching service will train a telescope on the Canary Islands on 2012 LZ1 and stream the footage live, beginning at 8:00 p.m. EDT Thursday (0000 GMT Friday). You can watch the asteroid flyby on Slooh's website, found here: events.slooh.com/2012 LZ1 just popped onto astronomers' radar this week. It was discovered on the night of June 10-11 by Rob McNaught and his colleagues, who were peering through the Uppsala Schmidt telescope at Siding Spring Observatory in Australia. Researchers estimate that the space rock is between 1,000 and 2,300 feet wide (300-700 m). On Thursday evening, it will come within about 3.35 million miles (5.4 million kilometers) of our planet, or roughly 14 times the distance between Earth and the moon. Because of its size and proximity to Earth, 2012 LZ1 qualifies as a potentially hazardous asteroid. Near-Earth asteroids generally have to be at least 500 feet (150 m) wide and come within 4.65 million miles (7.5 million km) of our planet to be classified as potentially hazardous. 2012 LZ1 is roughly the same size as asteroid 2005 YU55, which made a much-anticipated flyby of Earth last November. But 2005 YU55 gave our planet a much closer shave, coming within 202,000 miles (325,000 km) of us on the evening of Nov. 8. A space rock as big as 2005 YU55 hadn't come so close to Earth since 1976, researchers said. Astronomers have identified nearly 9,000 near-Earth asteroids, but they think many more are out there, waiting to be discovered. www.space.com/16131-huge-asteroid-flyby-2012-lz1-webcast.html
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Post by auntym on Oct 2, 2012 12:25:28 GMT -6
www.dailygalaxy.com/my_weblog/2012/10/-asteroid-miners-wanted-planetary-resources-help-wanted-messages-signals-the-new-commercial-space-ag.htmlOctober 02, 2012 "Asteroid Miners Wanted" --Planetary Resources Help-Wanted Messages Signals the New Commercial Space Age“Do you want to be an Asteroid Miner? Well, here’s your chance!” — announced Planetary Resources. “We’re looking for passionate college students for paid coop positions to help us mine asteroids this spring and summer. If you love space and want to contribute directly to the development of the next generation of space exploration technologies, we want to hear from you (or from anyone you know that you think would be interested)." — Chris Lewicki, President & Chief Asteroid Miner, Planetary Resources, Inc. PRI provides a unique and intimate work environment where you can make an immediate impact on product development and the fulfillment of primary company objectives. Join them in changing the way we explore the solar system. Asteroids are primordial material left over from the formation of the Solar System. They are scattered throughout it: some pass close to the Sun, and others are found out beyond the orbit of Neptune. A vast majority have been collected by Jupiter’s gravity into a belt between it and Mars – an area known as the Main Belt. As it turns out, we have been discovering thousands of asteroids that do not belong to the Main Belt, but instead pass near Earth’s orbit – nearly 9,000 to date, with almost a thousand more are discovered every year. Many of these near-Earth asteroids are easily accessible from Earth. And many contain enormous quantities of accessible resources. 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. Asteroid resources have some unique characteristics that make them especially attractive. Unlike Earth, where heavier metals are close to the core, metals in asteroids are distributed throughout their body, making them easier to extract. Asteroids contain valuable and useful materials like iron, nickel, water, and rare platinum group metals, often in significantly higher concentration than found in mines on Earth. We are only just beginning to realize the incredible potential of asteroids. The first encounter of a spacecraft with an asteroid was in 1991, as the Galileo spacecraft flew by the 951 Gaspra asteroid on its way to Jupiter. Our knowledge of these celestial neighbors has been revolutionized by a small set of US and international missions carried out since that time. With each visit or fly-by, the science on asteroids has been rewritten. Planetary Resources’ mission is to apply commercial, innovative techniques to explore space. They will develop low-cost robotic spacecraft to explore the thousands of resource-rich asteroids within our reach. They will develop the most efficient capabilities to deliver these resources directly to both space-based and terrestrial customers. Click here to apply now and be a part of history in the making! planetaryresources.us5.list-manage1.com/subscribe?u=86e5e3fd66ecbdeda82b09373&id=1d96084e5a CONTINUE READING: www.dailygalaxy.com/my_weblog/2012/10/-asteroid-miners-wanted-planetary-resources-help-wanted-messages-signals-the-new-commercial-space-ag.html
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Post by paulette on Oct 3, 2012 0:10:56 GMT -6
I'd like to be an asteroid rock hound!
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Post by skywalker on Oct 3, 2012 11:09:37 GMT -6
I'll do it if I get to keep the asteroid.
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Post by satansrini on Oct 3, 2012 12:47:21 GMT -6
I don't think this is real! Yeah another 200 or atleast 100 years may be. I can create a web page like that! It's a 2-3 hr job! For an expert.. may be 45 mins! We are scared to send people back to moon. We are finding it tough to send people to Mars. Asteroids are very tricky compared to a stable planet and we are no where close to putting a man in space without side effects. Mining is out of question! But it's a nice write up Edit: Just checked it. The organization seems authentic enough. But anyone can create a website like that. It would cost atleast 50-60 billion dollars to do this and we will get a few hundred tonnes of metal?!!!!!! Spacefaring is not that cheap! The miners will be essentially astronauts, if that ever happens! Not mining labour on Earth! Just imagine the cost of Astronaut training. If you don't want to train so many astronauts at that cost, you have to pour truck loads of money to build a craft that does not require Astronauts (like suited up, trained at NASA). If that were to be in place, why are the guys still sending machines to moon and Mars? Its a brilliant fantasy and you can't rally all money on Earth to do this. The day money -atleast fiat money - loses significance and the actual resources are valued for what they are, is the day something like this will bear fruit and im sure that won't happen before 2051 - which is about when I suppose I will die! Regards, Srinivas
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Post by auntym on Dec 9, 2012 12:33:58 GMT -6
news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2012/121204-asteroid-earth-science-space/?utm_source=Twitter&utm_medium=Social&utm_content=link_tw20121209news-giantasteroid2&utm_campaign=Content Large, Peanut-Shaped Asteroid Headed Toward Earth Dec. 12[/color] Scientists set to study lopsided celestial body.Rachel Kaufman for National Geographic News Published December 5, 2012 A giant asteroid is set to buzz Earth next week, and astronomers are already keeping their eyes on the skies—but not because 4179 Toutatis poses any danger. Toutatis, at 2.7 miles (4.46 kilometers) long and 1.5 miles (2.4 kilometers) wide, is one of the largest asteroids that comes anywhere near Earth. But only an astronomer would consider its closest approach to be "near." When the peanut-shaped rock is at its closest to the Earth on December 12, it'll be more than 4.3 million miles (6.9 million kilometers) away, or more than 18 times the distance from the Earth to the moon. See pictures of asteroids: news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2010/07/photogalleries/100713-lutetia-asteroid-rosetta-space-science-pictures/So why are astronomers eagerly awaiting Toutatis? By figuring out what the asteroid is made of, they'll have a better picture of the early days of the solar system. And by refining a model of the asteroid's rotation, they'll get a better idea of its composition. Topsy-Turvy Michael Busch, a fellow at the National Radio Astronomy Observatory, studied radar images of Toutatis' previous passes—the asteroid approaches Earth every four years—to try to figure out how it was moving through space. "It's tumbling," Busch said. "It's spinning around its long axis, while that in turn is precessing around in a circle, like a gyroscope." Busch and his colleagues were hoping to use radar images taken in 2000, 2004, and 2008 to update a 1996 model of Toutatis' spin state. "[But] this became more complicated when we understood that [gravitational] tides were changing the spin," he said. Every time Toutatis came close to the sun or the Earth, gravity would tug slightly on the asteroid, changing its spin by a tiny fraction. But over the years, those tugs added up. Once Busch and his collaborators were able to account for these changes, they had a much better model of its spin. And that told them how the asteroid's mass was distributed. Toutatis is shaped sort of like a lumpy peanut, or from some angles, like a poorly built snowman. It's long and narrow, with two distinct lobes, one smaller than the other. Busch's analysis found that the asteroid's shape isn't the only thing that's lumpy; its mass is also distributed in a lumpy fashion rather than evenly spread throughout the asteroid. "It may have a quite complicated internal structure," he said. CONTINUE READING: news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2012/121204-asteroid-earth-science-space/?utm_source=Twitter&utm_medium=Social&utm_content=link_tw20121209news-giantasteroid2&utm_campaign=Content
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Post by auntym on Dec 15, 2012 16:49:15 GMT -6
Asteroid Toutatis Slowly Tumbles by Earth12.14.12 DC Agle 818-393-9011 Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif. agle@jpl.nasa.gov WATCH VIDEO: www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/asteroids/news/asteroid20121214.html#.UMyspxDrxt4.twitterThis 64-frame movie of asteroid Toutatis was generated from data by Goldstone's Solar System Radar on Dec. 12 and 13, 2012. In the movie clips, the rotation of the asteroid appears faster than it occurs in nature. › Download video Scientists working with NASA's 230-foot-wide (70-meter) Deep Space Network antenna at Goldstone, Calif., have generated a series of radar data images of a three-mile-long (4.8-kilometer) asteroid that made its closest approach to Earth on Dec. 12, 2012. The radar data images of asteroid Toutatis have been assembled into a short movie, available online at: www.nasa.gov/multimedia/videogallery/index.html?media_id=157006881 . The images that make up the movie clip were generated with data taken on Dec. 12 and 13, 2012. On Dec. 12, the day of its closest approach to Earth, Toutatis was about 18 lunar distances, 4.3 million miles (6.9 million kilometers) from Earth. On Dec. 13, the asteroid was about 4.4 million miles (7 million kilometers), or about 18.2 lunar distances. The radar data images of asteroid Toutatis indicate that it is an elongated, irregularly shaped object with ridges and perhaps craters. Along with shape detail, scientists are also seeing some interesting bright glints that could be surface boulders. Toutatis has a very slow, tumbling rotational state. The asteroid rotates about its long axis every 5.4 days and precesses (changes the orientation of its rotational axis) like a wobbling, badly thrown football, every 7.4 days. The orbit of Toutatis is well understood. The next time Toutatis will approach at least this close to Earth is in November of 2069, when the asteroid will safely fly by at about 7.7 lunar distances, or 1.8 million miles (3 million kilometers). An analysis indicates there is zero possibility of an Earth impact over the entire interval over which its motion can be accurately computed, which is about the next four centuries. This radar data imagery will help scientists improve their understanding of the asteroid's spin state, which will also help them understand its interior. The resolution in the image frames is 12 feet (3.75 meters) per pixel. NASA detects, tracks and characterizes asteroids and comets passing close to Earth using both ground- and space-based telescopes. The Near-Earth Object Observations Program, commonly called "Spaceguard," discovers these objects, characterizes a subset of them, and plots their orbits to determine if any could be potentially hazardous to our planet. JPL manages the Near-Earth Object Program Office for NASA's Science Mission Directorate in Washington. JPL is a division of the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. WATCH VIDEO: www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/asteroids/news/asteroid20121214.html#.UMyspxDrxt4.twitter
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Post by auntym on Dec 23, 2012 22:52:34 GMT -6
www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2252489/Nasa-plans-lasso-asteroid-size-double-decker-buses-turn-space-station-orbit-moon.htmlRevealed: Nasa plan to 'lasso' asteroid the size of two buses and turn it into a 'space station' to orbit the moon *A giant bag would be cast over it and it would be towed to new location *Captured asteroid could provide stepping stone for exploration of Mars *It would be first time a celestial object has ever been moved by humans By Sean O'hare PUBLISHED: 23 December 2012 Nasa scientists are planning to capture a 500 ton asteroid , relocate it and turn it into a space station for astronauts on their way to Mars. The White House's Office of Science and technology will consider the £1.6bn plan in the coming weeks as it prepares to set its space exploration agenda for the next decade. If approved it would be the first time a celestial object has ever been moved by humans. A feasibility report prepared by Nasa and California Institute of Technology (Caltech) scientists outlined how they would go about capturing the asteroid. A, 'asteroid capture capsule' would be attached to an old Atlas V rocket and directed the asteroid between the earth and the moon. Once close, the asteroid capsule would release a 50ft diameter bag that wrap around the spinning rock using drawstrings. The craft would then turn on its thrusters, using an estimated 300kg of propellant, to stop the asteroid in its tracks and tow it into a gravitationally neutral spot. From here space explorers would have a stationary base from which to launch trips deeper into space. The report said: 'The idea of exploiting the natural resources of asteroids dates back over a hundred years, but only now has the technology become available to make this idea a reality. CONTINUE READING: www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2252489/Nasa-plans-lasso-asteroid-size-double-decker-buses-turn-space-station-orbit-moon.html
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Post by auntym on Dec 30, 2012 21:36:56 GMT -6
www.ufodigest.com/article/killer-asteroids-what-us-worryDecember 30, 2012 Killer Asteroids, What, Us Worry?By Diane Tessman - Mars as seen from the Asteroid Belt If an asteroid, one hundred meters across hits Earth, it would explode with the force of a dozen nuclear weapons. Alas, Earth sits in a Solar System which is full of asteroids, large and small. Millions of asteroids orbit the Sun; some of those cross the Earth’s path. Asteroids are sometimes as small as grains of sand, and they create brilliant shooting stars when they burn up in our atmosphere. Often they are mistaken for UFOs. However, asteroids can be the size of large football stadiums or as large in area as a city. The asteroid which extinguished the dinosaurs overnight was ten kilometers across. It crashed to Earth 65 million years ago. Are there any killer asteroids headed our way soon? We are fairly positive that no huge asteroids are headed our way for a few centuries. Of course, if we do not believe NASA about life, or at least alien craft on the Moon and Mars, then should we believe them that no killer asteroids are headed our way soon? This is up to the individual reader. What do we do to find the huge asteroids of the future and smaller ones which could arrive anytime and would still do great damage to Earth, her environment and civilization? First, asteroids must be located. Smaller asteroids around one hundred meters in diameter are hard to see; we need big telescopes that can sweep across large areas of sky rapidly and which can track those moving asteroids. The good news is we have telescopes like that, and we're building more. Still, some of these galactic bombs are in orbits that make them very difficult to spot. Asteroids stay near the Sun, making them hard to observe from the ground. Therefore, we should build a spacecraft that travels in a path closer to the Sun. This craft should look away from the Sun rather than into the Sun in order to spot asteroids. Another idea is to launch a telescope that does the same thing but stays near Earth. Both have their advantages, and the good news is that both of these concepts is being pursued through preliminary research. The B612 Foundation is a group of astronomers, astronauts, and engineers who investigate how to avoid asteroid impact on Earth. They are seeking private donations to build Sentinel, a spacecraft that will travel into an orbit similar to Venus, to look for dangerous asteroids. CONTINUE READING: www.ufodigest.com/article/killer-asteroids-what-us-worry
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Post by auntym on Jan 9, 2013 13:12:42 GMT -6
www.telegraph.co.uk/science/space/9789615/275m-asteroid-to-make-close-encounter-with-Earth.html 275m asteroid to make close encounter with Earth[/color]
A 275-metre wide asteroid will fly by the Earth today in the latest in a series of close approaches. [/color] By Alice Philipson 09 Jan 2013 Apophis, named after an Egyptian mythological demon, will not get closer than around nine million miles and scientists have ruled out any possibility of a cataclysmic collision However, in 2036, there is a very small chance that Apophis could smash into Earth. Scientists will use today's encounter to gauge just how much of a threat the asteroid really is. Current models predict a tiny but real likelihood of a collision. In 2029, Apophis is expected to whizz past at a distance a little too close for comfort – just 30,000 kilometres. That will put the asteroid inside the orbit of communication satellites. When the asteroid was discovered in 2004 scientists calculated a one-in-45 chance of an impact in 2029. Improved predictions later lifted the threat. The asteroid's latest near approach will occur at midnight UK time tonight. Members of the public can view the event online via the Slooh web-based sky-watching service, which collects images from observatories around the world. Slooh President Patrick Paolucci said: "Alone among all these near-Earth asteroids that have passed our way in recent years, Apophis has generated the most concern worldwide because of its extremely close approach in 2029 and potential impact, albeit small, in 2036. We are excited to cover this asteroid live for the general public." Scientists at the American space agency Nasa have calculated that if Apophis struck the Earth it would generate a blast equivalent to more than 500 megatons of TNT. In comparison, the most powerful hydrogen bomb ever detonated, the Soviet Tsar Bomba, released 57 megatons. CONTINUE READING: www.telegraph.co.uk/science/space/9789615/275m-asteroid-to-make-close-encounter-with-Earth.html
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Post by auntym on Feb 15, 2013 13:08:20 GMT -6
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