Subscribe free to our newsletters via your
. 24/7 Space News .




IRON AND ICE
Whizzing Asteroid Turns Rocket Scientists' Heads
by Staff Writers
Orlando FL (SPX) Oct 29, 2012


illustration only

International leaders in asteroid and comet research are gathering at the University of Central Florida in Orlando Friday, Feb. 15, for a special "viewing party" that will climax with asteroid 2012 DA14 zipping between Earth and orbiting communication satellites (within 14,000 miles of Earth).

The asteroid, the size of a city block, will squeeze by Earth's atmosphere and the geostationary satellites orbiting the planet. It will be the closest fly by in history.

Experts say there is no chance the asteroid will hit Earth - this time. But with more than 4,700 asteroids NASA has identified as potential threats to Earth, some as big as 16 football fields, these objects are getting a lot of attention.

Humberto Campins, a UCF physics professor who led the first team to discover water ice on an asteroid in 2010, says the asteroids provide clues to the early formation of the solar system and should interest the entire community because they can be hazards as well as resources.

Campins is working on NASA and European Space Agency missions launching in the next few years to recover asteroid samples

Should an asteroid be detected on a collision course with Earth, it will be critical to know its composition and structure in order to deflect it. The impact of a small asteroid like DA 14 would equal the destructive power of an atomic bomb. A larger asteroid could be catastrophic.

That's why Campins and the planetary scientists at UCF organized this free Viewing Party and invited leaders in this asteroid research to speak to the public about the reality and myths of these ancient rocks on Feb. 15. UCF and the Florida Space Institute are sponsoring this event.

Confirmed speakers include Dr. Michael F. A'Hearn, the scientist who led NASA's Deep Impact mission, which launched the first man-made object into the nucleus of a comet, and Dr. Harold Reitsema, a former NASA scientist who is part of the B612 Foundation's private effort to launch a telescope that will locate and track asteroids that could hit Earth.

The scientists will talk about why asteroid research is so vital to Earth and the new NASA and private efforts to track them.

The public also will get a chance to see the fly-by through exclusive live feeds from telescopes in La Sagra and Tenerife, Spain, where the astronomers who first discovered DA 14 will be tracking it. Live feeds from Majorca and other observatories are also planned.

Astrophysicist and asteroid expert Dr. Javier Licandro, of the Institute of Astrophysics of the Canaries in Tenerife, Spain, also will provide some commentary. Licandro and Campins regularly collaborate on research projects.

To see animation click here.

.


Related Links
University of Central Florida
B612 Foundation
Asteroid and Comet Mission News, Science and Technology






Comment on this article via your Facebook, Yahoo, AOL, Hotmail login.

Share this article via these popular social media networks
del.icio.usdel.icio.us DiggDigg RedditReddit GoogleGoogle








IRON AND ICE
Lost asteroid rediscovered with a little help from ESA
Paris (ESA) Oct 15, 2012
A potentially hazardous asteroid once found but then lost has been rediscovered and its orbit confirmed by a determined amateur astronomer working with ESA's space hazards programme. The half-kilometre object will not threaten Earth anytime soon. Amateur astronomer Erwin Schwab, from Germany, conducted his asteroid hunt in September during a regular observation slot at ESA's Optical Ground ... read more


IRON AND ICE
Study: Moon basin formed by giant impact

NASA's LADEE Spacecraft Gets Final Science Instrument Installed

Astrium presents results of its study into automatic landing near the Moon's south pole

European mission to search for moon water

IRON AND ICE
Opportunity Undertakes Survey Drives Of Local Area

Assessing Drop-Off to Mars Rover's Observation Tray

Valles Marineris - the largest canyon in the Solar System

Curiosity Rover Collects Fourth Scoop of Martian Soil

IRON AND ICE
New NASA Online Science Resource Available for Educators and Students

'First' Pakistan astronaut wants to make peace in space

Space daredevil Baumgartner is 'officially retired'

NASA must reinvest in nanotechnology research, according to new Rice University paper

IRON AND ICE
China to launch 11 meteorological satellites by 2020

China makes progress in spaceflight research

Patience for Tiangong

China launches civilian technology satellites

IRON AND ICE
Packed Week Ahead for Six-Member Crew

New crew docks with ISS: Russia

ISS Crew Gets Ready for New Expedition 33 Trio

New ISS Crew Confirmed

IRON AND ICE
SpaceX capsule completes successful first mission

S. Korea sets new window for rocket launch

Pleiades 1B joins its launcher at the Spaceport for Arianespace's Soyuz mission in November

S. Korea readies third bid to join global space club

IRON AND ICE
New Study Brings a Doubted Exoplanet 'Back from the Dead'

New small satellite will study super-Earths for ESA

Most Planetary Systems are 'Flatter than Pancakes'

Glitch could end NASA planet search

IRON AND ICE
Outdoor wear often coated in harmful chemicals: Greenpeace

French Magpie start-up leaches gold from water with modern alchemy

U.S. unveils new supercomputer

Google unveils large tablet, revamped Nexus lineup




The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2014 - Space Media Network. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA Portal Reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. Advertising does not imply endorsement,agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. Privacy Statement