Near-Earth objects (NEOs) as a research area encompass the observational, theoretical, and modeling studies of asteroids and comets whose orbits bring them into proximity with Earth, typically with perihelion distances less than 1.3 astronomical units. This field integrates asteroid/comet discovery surveys, orbit determination and dynamical evolution, physical and compositional characterization, impact probability assessment, and planetary defense strategies. Research includes population statistics, source regions and transport mechanisms from main-belt or trans-Neptunian reservoirs, surface and internal structure studies, non-gravitational forces such as the Yarkovsky effect, and development of mitigation techniques for potentially hazardous objects, often using ground-based telescopes, radar, and spacecraft missions.
The European Space Agency has given the go-ahead for initial work on a mission to visit an asteroid called (99942) Apophis. If approved at a key meeting next year, the robotic spacecraft, known as the Rapid Apophis Mission ...
Space Exploration
Nov 4, 2024
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The sight of a fireball streaking across the sky brings wonder and excitement to children and adults alike. It's a reminder that Earth is part of a much larger and incredibly dynamic system.
Planetary Sciences
Oct 19, 2024
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Earth's newest celestial neighbor has finally arrived. Astronomers using a powerful telescope in Sutherland, South Africa, first detected the 33-foot-long asteroid in August, reporting their discovery in Research Notes of ...
Space Exploration
Oct 10, 2024
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207
Astronomers have good news about potentially hazardous asteroids lurking near our planet: There aren't as many as we thought.
Astronomy
Oct 7, 2024
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866
In 2023, the NASA OSIRIS-REx mission returned a sample of dust and rocks collected on the near-Earth asteroid Bennu. In addition to the information about the universe gleaned from the sample itself, the data generated by ...
General Physics
Oct 7, 2024
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452
Europe's Hera probe is tentatively scheduled to launch Monday on a mission to inspect the damage a NASA spacecraft made when it smashed into an asteroid during the first test of Earth's planetary defenses.
Space Exploration
Oct 4, 2024
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99
Earth's moon will soon have some company—a "mini moon."
Planetary Sciences
Sep 29, 2024
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484
Asteroid Ryugu possibly did not travel as far from its place of origin to its current near-Earth orbit as previously assumed. New research published in the journal Science Advances suggests that Ryugu was formed near Jupiter.
Planetary Sciences
Sep 27, 2024
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370
Earth will capture a miniature, "second moon" this week, according to NASA scientists.
Space Exploration
Sep 27, 2024
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1723
Humanity could use a nuclear bomb to deflect a massive, life-threatening asteroid hurtling towards Earth in the future, according to scientists who tested the theory in the laboratory by blasting X-rays at a marble-sized ...
Space Exploration
Sep 25, 2024
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