Asteroids as a research area encompasses the scientific investigation of small rocky bodies primarily located in the asteroid belt and throughout the Solar System, focusing on their composition, internal structure, dynamical evolution, and role in planetary formation and collisional processes. This field integrates observational astronomy, spectroscopy, celestial mechanics, planetary geology, and space mission data to constrain asteroid taxonomies, surface and subsurface properties, impact hazards, and resource potential. Research addresses accretion and differentiation histories, space weathering, binary and rubble-pile formation, migration mechanisms, and their contribution to the delivery of volatiles and organics to terrestrial planets, providing constraints on early Solar System conditions.
Much remains to be known about the chemical composition of small asteroids. Their potential to harbor valuable metals, materials from the early solar system, and the possibility of obtaining a geochemical record of their ...
Space Exploration
Dec 10, 2025
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Observations with the instrument SPHERE at ESO's Very Large Telescope have produced an unprecedented gallery of "debris disks" in exoplanetary systems.
Astronomy
Dec 3, 2025
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The asteroid Bennu continues to provide new clues to scientists' biggest questions about the formation of the early solar system and the origins of life. As part of the ongoing study of pristine samples delivered to Earth ...
Astrobiology
Dec 2, 2025
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The number 40,000 might not sound particularly dramatic, but it represents humanity's growing catalog of near-Earth asteroids, rocky remnants from the solar system's violent birth that cross paths with our planet's orbit. ...
Astronomy
Nov 25, 2025
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At this point in history, astronomers and engineers who grew up watching "Deep Impact" and "Armageddon," two movies about the destructive power of asteroid impacts, are likely in relatively high ranking positions at space ...
Planetary Sciences
Nov 17, 2025
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In the distant past, the solar system was rife with impacts and collisions. Millions of rocky objects zoomed chaotically through the system, smashing into each other in collisional cascades. Over time, many of them eventually ...
Astronomy
Oct 22, 2025
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An asteroid recently made the second closest pass to Earth ever observed on October 1st. And astronomers only found it after it had already completed its closest approach. That offers another lesson in how difficult it is ...
Planetary Sciences
Oct 9, 2025
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Surface features on asteroid 52246 Donaldjohanson, as identified by the Southwest Research Institute-led Lucy mission, have been given official names by the International Astronomical Union (IAU). The surface features of ...
Planetary Sciences
Oct 1, 2025
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Whether an asteroid is spinning neatly on its axis or tumbling chaotically, and how fast it is doing so, has been shown to be dependent on how frequently it has experienced collisions. The findings, presented at the recent ...
Planetary Sciences
Sep 30, 2025
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Young asteroids—which formed much later than those that were created during the formation of our solar system—are typically created when larger asteroids, planetesimals, or comets collide and break up into smaller pieces. ...
