![]() ![]() Gaussia: Predicting and Recovering the New Planet. Piazzia: A New Planet Swims into His Ken. 55P/Tempel–Tuttle: Source of the Leonids. Jenniskens: Finding the Almahata Sitta Meteorites. 2008 TC3: The Asteroid That Fell to Earth. Arrested Development or Chip off the Old Block?. 1.2 and for reading the text and to Richard Miles for taking and supplying the image in Fig. I am grateful to Alan Fitzsimmons for taking and supplying the picture in Fig. Cover design: Frido at studio escalamar Printed on acid-free paper This Springer imprint is published by Springer Nature The registered company is Springer International Publishing AG Switzerland Neither the publisher nor the authors or the editors give a warranty, express or implied, with respect to the material contained herein or for any errors or omissions that may have been made. The publisher, the authors and the editors are safe to assume that the advice and information in this book are believed to be true and accurate at the date of publication. in this publication does not imply, even in the absence of a specific statement, that such names are exempt from the relevant protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general use. The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. All rights are reserved by the Publisher, whether the whole or part of the material is concerned, specifically the rights of translation, reprinting, reuse of illustrations, recitation, broadcasting, reproduction on microfilms or in any other physical way, and transmission or information storage and retrieval, electronic adaptation, computer software, or by similar or dissimilar methodology now known or hereafter developed. Library of Congress Control Number: 2016938526 © Springer International Publishing Switzerland 2016 This work is subject to copyright. Paul Murdin Institute of Astronomy University of Cambridge Cambridge, UK “The spacecraft is now returning home, carrying a precious sample from this fascinating ancient object that will help us better understand not only the history of the solar system, but also the role of sunlight in altering Bennu’s orbit since we will measure the asteroid’s thermal properties at unprecedented scales in laboratories on Earth.Rock Legends The Asteroids and Their Discoverers ![]() “The orbital data from this mission helped us better appreciate Bennu’s impact chances over the next couple of centuries and our overall understanding of potentially hazardous asteroids – an incredible result,” said Dante Lauretta, OSIRIS-REx principal investigator and professor at the University of Arizona. These keyholes are areas in space that would set Bennu on a path toward a future impact with Earth if the asteroid were to pass through them at certain times, due to the effect of Earth’s gravitational pull. The precision measurements on Bennu help to better determine how the asteroid’s orbit will evolve over time and whether it will pass through a “gravitational keyhole” during its 2135 close approach. The researchers believe that 24 September 2182 is the most significant single date in terms of a potential impact and although the chances of it hitting Earth are very low, it remains one of the two most hazardous known asteroids in our solar system, along with another asteroid called 1950 DA. “The OSIRIS-REx mission has provided an extraordinary opportunity to refine and test these models, helping us better predict where Bennu will be when it makes its close approach to Earth more than a century from now.” “We carry out this endeavour through continuing astronomical surveys that collect data to discover previously unknown objects and refine our orbital models for them. “Nasa’s Planetary Defence mission is to find and monitor asteroids and comets that can come near Earth and may pose a hazard to our planet,” said Kelly Fast at Nasa’s Near-Earth Object Observations Program. Nasa said scientists will need to get a grip on its exact trajectory during the encounter in order to predict how Earth’s gravity will alter the asteroid’s path around the Sun and affect the chances of an Earth impact. In 2135, it will make a close approach with Earth, although it will not pose a danger at that time. With a firmer understanding of its path, Nasa scientists now believe the odds of Bennu striking the Earth have risen from 1 in 2,700 to 1 in 1,750 over the next century or two. It is believed to have successfully collected that sample last October and is currently undergoing the two-year trip back home. OSIRIS-REx was launched in 2016 with the primary mission of studying Bennu and ultimately returning a sample of it back to Earth for detailed analysis. Researchers from the space agency used precision-tracking data from the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft (pictured above) to better understand the potentially hazardous asteroid’s movements.
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