Archive - Asteroid -UA-File
MADRID, 9 December. (EUROPE PRESS) –
MIT astronomers have found a way to detect asteroids about 10 meters in diameter within the main asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter.
Until now, the smallest asteroids that scientists have been able to spot were about a kilometer in diameter. With the team’s new approach, scientists can now detect asteroids in the main belt as small as 10 meters in diameter.
In an article published in the magazine “Natura”. The researchers report that they have used their method to detect more than 100 new asteroids from a decade in the main asteroid belt. the space rocks range from the size of a bus to several stages in size and are the smallest asteroids within the main belt ever detected to date. The researchers predict that this approach could be used to identify and track asteroids that may approach Earth.
The asteroid that extinguished the dinosaurs is estimated to have been about 10 kilometers in diameter, about the width of brooklyn. An impact of this magnitude is expected to hit Earth rarely, once every 100 to 500 million years.In contrast, much smaller asteroids, about the size of a bus, may collide with Earth more frequently, every few years. These “decametric” asteroids, which measure just a few tens of meters in diameter, they are more likely to escape the main asteroid belt and migrate towards it to become near-Earth objects.
IMPACT OF 1908 IN TUNGUSKA
If they strike, these small but powerful space rocks can send shock waves through entire regions, such as the 1908 impact in Tunguska, Siberia, and the 2013 asteroid that disintegrated in the sky above chelyabinsk, in the Urals. Being able to observe decametric asteroids from the main belt would provide a window into the origin of meteorites.
Now, co-authors of the study, including Julien de wit and richard Binzel, professors of planetary science at MIT, say: “We were able to detect near-Earth objects up to 10 meters in size when they are truly close to Earth. have a way to detect these small asteroids when they are much further away, so we can do more precise orbital trackingwhich is key to planetary defense.”
De Wit and his team are primarily focused on researching and studying exoplanets,worlds outside the solar system that may be habitable. The researchers are part of the team that in 2016 discovered a planetary system around TRAPPIST-1, a star located about 40 light-years from Earth. Using the Transiting and Planetismal Small Telescope (TRAPPIST) in Chile, the team confirmed that the star hosts Earth-sized rocky planets, many of which are in the habitable zone.
As then, scientists have pointed many telescopes at different wavelengths at the TRAPPIST-1 system to better characterize the planets and look for signs of life. With these searches, astronomers had to sift through the “noise” present in the telescope images, such as gas, dust and planetary objects found between Earth and the star, to more clearly decipher the TRAPPIST-1 planets. Often the noise they discard includes that of asteroids passing nearby.”For most astronomers, asteroids are seen as a sort of plague on the sky, meaning they pass through the field of view and affect the data,” explains de Wit.
De Wit and Burdanov wondered whether the same data used to search for exoplanets could be recycled and mined to find asteroids in our solar system. to do this, they looked for the method of “moving and stacking”, an image processing technique first developed in the 1990s.The method involves moving multiple images of the same field of view and stacking them to see if an or else faint object can obscure the noise.
Applying this method to search for unknown asteroids in images originally focused on distant stars would require meaningful computational resources, as it would involve testing a large number of scenarios to determine where an asteroid might be located. Researchers would then have to edit thousands of images for each scenario to see if an asteroid is really where it was predicted.
For the new study,researchers searched for more,but smaller,asteroids using data from the world’s most powerful observatory: NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope (JWST). which is particularly sensitive to infrared light rather than visible light. In reality, asteroids orbiting in the main asteroid belt are much brighter at infrared wavelengths than at visible wavelengths and are thus much easier to detect with the JWST’s infrared capabilities.
The team applied their approach to images of TRAPPIST-1 obtained by JWST. The data included more than 10,000 images of the star, originally obtained to look for signs of atmospheres around the system’s inner planets. After processing the images,the researchers were able to detect eight known asteroids in the main belt. They then searched further and discovered 138 new asteroids around the main belt, all tens of meters in diameter, the smallest main belt asteroids detected to date.They suspect that some asteroids are on their way to becoming near-Earth objects, while one is probably a Trojan, an asteroid that follows Jupiter.
“We thought we would detect only a few new objects,but we detected many more than expected,especially small ones” says de Wit. “It’s a sign that we are studying a new demographic regime, in which many smaller objects form through cascades of collisions that are very efficient at disintegrating asteroids below 100 meters.”
“We are entering a totally new and unexplored space thanks to modern technologies,” says Burdanov. “It’s a good example of what we can do as a field when we look at data differently. Sometimes there are great rewards, and this is one of them.”
What are the current methods for detecting small asteroids in the main asteroid belt?
Interview Between Time.news Editor and MIT Astronomer Expert on Asteroid Detection
Editor: Welcome to Time.news! today, we’re diving deep into an exciting breakthrough in asteroid detection. Joining us is an expert from MIT, Professor Richard Binzel, who has recently contributed to a study on detecting much smaller asteroids in the main asteroid belt.Thank you for being here, Professor Binzel!
Binzel: Thank you for having me! It’s a pleasure to be here.
Editor: let’s start with the impact of your findings. Until now, scientists could typically only spot asteroids that were about a kilometer in diameter. How have you managed to push that boundary down to just 10 meters?
Binzel: That’s a great question! Our team’s innovative approach involves advanced observational techniques that allow us to detect much fainter objects. We utilize high-resolution imaging and enhanced data analysis methods to observe the main asteroid belt’s background. Essentially, we’re looking for the small movements of thes asteroids against the neighboring stars, which were previously too dim to notice.
Editor: Fascinating! You mentioned detecting over 100 new asteroids ranging from the size of a bus to various other sizes. How significant is this discovery in the broader context of planetary defense?
Binzel: Very significant! Being able to track decametric asteroids is crucial for planetary defense. While larger asteroids, like the one that caused the extinction of the dinosaurs, are rare, smaller asteroids are more frequent threats. They can collide with Earth every few years. Understanding their trajectories well in advance can definitely help mitigate potential impacts.
Editor: That’s alarming but also captivating. Can you elaborate on the dangers posed by these smaller asteroids? How do they compare to the larger ones?
Binzel: Absolutely. While larger asteroids can cause catastrophic global effects, even smaller asteroids, like those the size of a bus, can cause significant regional damage. For instance, the Tunguska event in 1908 was due to an explosion from a small asteroid that devastated a large area in Siberia. Detecting these smaller bodies early on can help in predicting their paths and addressing potential threats.
Editor: It sounds like your method also opens a new window for understanding meteorites. Can you elaborate a bit on that?
Binzel: Yes! By observing these decametric asteroids, we gain insights into their composition and origin. This research could help us understand the building blocks of our solar system and the processes that led to the formation of planets.In essence, it’s like peeking into the past of our celestial neighborhood.
Editor: Looking ahead, what do you hope this research will achieve in the realm of astronomy and planetary science?
Binzel: Our primary goal is to refine our ability to detect and track smaller, near-Earth objects so that we can provide timely warnings if any are on a collision course with Earth. Furthermore, our findings could inspire further research into asteroid mining and resource utilization in space travel, which is becoming increasingly relevant as we venture deeper into our solar system.
Editor: That’s incredibly exciting! Before we wrap up, is there anything you’d like to say to our audience about the significance of this research?
Binzel: I’d just like to emphasize that space is not a distant concern—it directly impacts us here on Earth. Educating ourselves about these celestial bodies and supporting ongoing research in planetary defense is key to ensuring our safety and advancing our exploration of the cosmos.
Editor: Thank you so much, Professor Binzel, for shedding light on this important topic. We look forward to following your work and its implications for both science and society!
Binzel: Thank you for having me! It’s been a pleasure discussing our research.