Latest news with #GeminiSouthObservatory
Forbes
12-04-2025
- Science
- Forbes
‘Earth Crosser' Asteroid May Now Strike The Moon, Scientists Say
An artist's illustration of 2024 YR4 Asteroid 2024 YR4, until recently thought to have a chance of striking Earth on December 22, 2032, could now be headed for the moon instead, according to new data. After new observations, 2024 YR4 is thought to have a diameter of about 98–213 feet (30–65 meters). The James Webb Space Telescope studied it in March and found it to be about 197 feet (60 meters). That's about the same width as a football field. The stony asteroid — first discovered on December 27, 2024, when it was passing just 1.5 million miles (2.5 million kilometers) — is one of the largest objects in recent history that could impact the moon, according to a paper accepted for publication in The Astrophysical Journal Letters. A lunar impact would be a book for scientists, who know little about the relationship between the size of an asteroid and the size of its resulting impact crater — despite the moon being covered in craters. 'If it does, it will give scientists a rare chance to study how the size of an asteroid relates to the size of the crater it creates — something we haven't been able to measure directly before," said Bryce Bolin, the lead author. For now, there's a roughly 2% chance YR4 could collide with the moon. An artist's illustration of 2024 YR4 in relation to Earth. Data from the Gemini South Observatory in Chile and the Keck Observatory in Arizona revealed that the asteroid rapidly rotates backward and may be shaped like a hockey puck. 'This find was rather unexpected since most asteroids are thought to be shaped like potatoes or toy tops rather than flat disks,' said Bolin. '2024 YR4 is a solid rock, likely chipped off from a larger rubble-pile asteroid in the central Main Belt between Mars and Jupiter." That 2024 YR4 appears to come from the main asteroid belt is a surprise. 'This region was not previously known to produce asteroids on Earth-crossing paths,' said Bolin. It's thought that gravitational interactions with Jupiter have forced it into the vicinity of Earth. This composite image of asteroid 2024 YR4 was captured with the Gemini South telescope in Chile. 2024 YR4 came to prominence in late January 2025 when the International Asteroid Warning Network placed the asteroid on its watch list after calculations of its orbit suggested it had over a 1% probability of hitting Earth in 2032. However, more calculations showed that it had dropped below 1% by late February. At the end of February, NASA announced that the chances of 2024 YR4 striking Earth during a close pass in 2032 were near zero. 'Studying this asteroid was vitally important in understanding the population of Earth crossers that have the potential to be Earth impactors and are poorly understood," said Bolin. This is a still from an animation showing asteroid 2024 YR4 as it passes by Earth and heads toward ... More its potential impact with the Moon. The news about 2024 YR4 comes as astronomers prepare for a very close pass of a much larger asteroid, 99942 Apophis, in exactly four years. The 1,100-foot (340-meter) wide asteroid will get to within 20,000 miles (32,000 kilometers) of Earth on Friday, April 13, 2029, creating a once-in-a-thousands-year opportunity for science. It will be so close that it will be seen eyed by observers across Western Europe and Western Africa. When Apophis was discovered in 2004, scientists calculated it might strike Earth in 2029, 2036 or 2068 — hence its "God of Chaos" nickname. NASA and the European Space Agency will send spacecraft to orbit Apophis before, during and after its close pass, just in case its trajectory changes and it becomes Earth-bound. Wishing you clear skies and wide eyes.
Yahoo
10-04-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
Asteroid That Threatened Earth Shaped Like a Saucer, Scientists Find With Large Telescope
After taking another peek at the "city-killer" asteroid that once had a small but uncomfortable chance of smashing into our planet, astronomers have figured out what it actually looks like: a flat, spinning disk. The preferred analogy has been to compare the shape to a hockey puck. To us, this sounds like a huge missed opportunity to say that the Earth was — however briefly — under threat by a literal flying saucer, just like in that one movie. The findings come from a preprint study, accepted for publication in The Astrophysical Journal Letters. Using the Gemini South Observatory in Chile, the astronomers imaged the roughly 200-foot asteroid, 2024 YR4, in multiple wavelengths, revealing that it was rapidly rotating once every 20 minutes, in addition to its unusual UFO-like appearance. "This find was rather unexpected since most asteroids are thought to be shaped like potatoes or toy tops rather than flat disks," lead author Bryce Bolin from Eureka Scientific said in a statement about the work. The chunky space rock was first spotted in late December of last year. Soon, early observations predicted that there was a small but disquieting chance of one percent that it could hit our planet. By February, the odds surpassed 3 percent, before the space rock was finally determined determined to be on a harmless trajectory. At the time, from what scientists could tell from visible light observations, 2024 YR4 appeared to be around 300 feet long, a size large enough to wipe out a metropolis should it strike one. Recent research using the James Webb Space Telescope's infrared capabilities, however, determined it was actually no more than 220 feet long, or about the size of a 10-story building, and as small as 174 feet. This latest study backs up that estimate, independently concluding that YR4 is between 98 to 213 feet in diameter. Digging deeper, the astronomers studied the asteroid's lightcurves, finding that 2024 YR4 is what's known as an S-type asteroid rich in silicates. That's not surprising, but its origins are: the asteroid appears to have been nudged our way by Jupiter out of the solar system's main asteroid belt, a ring of rocky objects surrounding the Sun that stretches between the orbits of Mars and the gas giant — specifically, a region called the central main belt. Previously, astronomers suspected 2024 YR4 came from the inner main belt, based on its composition — but its retrograde spin revealed in these latest observations indicate otherwise. "We are a bit surprised about its origin in the central main asteroid belt, which is a location in the asteroid belt that we did not think many Earth-crossing asteroids could originate from," Bolin said. While it no longer poses a threat to Earth, there's still a 3.8 percent chance YR4 could veer into the Moon, according to the latest Webb observations. If it does, the impact will leave a nasty scar — but shouldn't alter the lunar world's orbit. More on space: Scientists Intrigued by Stars Singing Ancient Songs
Asharq Al-Awsat
09-04-2025
- Science
- Asharq Al-Awsat
New Observations Show Asteroid Resembling a Spinning Hockey Puck
The asteroid that once had a small chance of striking Earth and now might slam into the moon resembles a spinning hockey puck, scientists said Tuesday. A team of astronomers used the Gemini South Observatory in Chile to observe asteroid 2024 YR4 in multiple wavelengths as it zoomed away from Earth in February, barely 1 1/2 months after its discovery. They created a 3D image of it based on their findings, The Associated Press reported. The nearly 200 foot (60-meter) asteroid looks more like a flat disk — or not-quite-round hockey puck — than a potato. It also has a rapid rotation rate of about once every 20 minutes. 'This find was rather unexpected since most asteroids are thought to be shaped like potatoes or toy tops rather than flat disks,' the research team lead, Bryce Bolin from Eureka Scientific said in a statement. Scientists said it most likely originated in the main asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter, and is rich in silicates. At one point earlier this year, NASA and the European Space Agency put the odds of the asteroid striking Earth in 2032 at 3%. It's now down to virtually zero for the next century, but there's a 3.8% chance it could strike the moon instead. Even if that happens, NASA assures the moon's orbit will not be altered. The asteroid —- which swings our way every four years — will be too far away by next week for ground telescopes to see. The Webb Space Telescope will take another look later this month or next. Scientists consider all this good practice for when a potentially killer asteroid heads our way.
The Independent
08-04-2025
- Science
- The Independent
New observations show the asteroid that won't hit Earth resembles a spinning hockey puck
The asteroid that once had a small chance of striking Earth and now might slam into the moon resembles a spinning hockey puck, scientists said Tuesday. A team of astronomers used the Gemini South Observatory in Chile to observe asteroid 2024 YR4 in multiple wavelengths as it zoomed away from Earth in February, barely 1 1/2 months after its discovery. They created a 3D image of it based on their findings. The nearly 200 foot (60-meter) asteroid looks more like a flat disk — or not-quite-round hockey puck — than a potato. It also has a rapid rotation rate of about once every 20 minutes. 'This find was rather unexpected since most asteroids are thought to be shaped like potatoes or toy tops rather than flat disks,' the research team lead, Bryce Bolin from Eureka Scientific said in a statement. Scientists said it most likely originated in the main asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter, and is rich in silicates. At one point earlier this year, NASA and the European Space Agency put the odds of the asteroid striking Earth in 2032 at 3%. It's now down to virtually zero for the next century, but there's a 3.8% chance it could strike the moon instead. Even if that happens, NASA assures the moon's orbit will not be altered. The asteroid —- which swings our way every four years — will be too far away by next week for ground telescopes to see. The Webb Space Telescope will take another look later this month or next. Scientists consider all this good practice for when a potentially killer asteroid heads our way. ___ The Associated Press Health and Science Department receives support from the Howard Hughes Medical Institute's Science and Educational Media Group and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. The AP is solely responsible for all content.
