Asteroids have been fascinating scientists for
hundreds of years. The first asteroid to be discovered was Ceres, in
1801. Since then literally tens of thousands of asteroids have been
observed flying willy-nilly across our solar System.
In 2004 the near Earth asteroids really came into the public eye because the asteroid Apophis was thought to potentially impact the Earth. That is not really a news-worthy event in itself because several tiny asteroids impact the Earth’s atmosphere each year. What made Apophis stand out was its size. At 270 meters, scientists estimate that the asteroid could have destroyed up to 25% of the life on our planet.
In addition to scaring the average Joe, asteroids offer many scientific benefits. Much of what we know about space has been garnered from studying the metal and other content of asteroids that have impacted the Earth’s surface. Scientists have even managed to revive a bacteria form from a meteorite that is thought to have originated from Mars.
There are some scientists and industrialists that point a future where all of the metals and ores on this planet will be exhausted. They look towards the heavens and envision a time when there will be miners on the largest asteroids extracting the minerals, metals, and perhaps the water that the civilizations on Earth will desperately need to continue their existence.
Asteroid Belt :-The asteroid belt is a region of space between Mars and Jupiter. It is generally called the main belt to distinguish it from the Kuiper belt and the scattered disc. More than half the mass of the belt is is composed by Ceres, Vesta, Pallas, and Hygiea. Ceres makes up nearly 25% of the asteroid belt’s mass by itself. The asteroids range from the size of Ceres down to many that are as small as a dust particle.
The asteroid belt is so thinly populated that several unmanned spacecraft have been able to move through it – this isn’t the dense field of asteroids you see in movies and television. The next mission to pass through the asteroid belt will be the Dawn space mission. Despite these space craft moving safely through the asteroid belt, several of the larger asteroids have collided and formed “families” with the same orbital characteristics and make up.
Asteroid Field :-The asteroid field is usually referred to as the main belt, but it is not the only asteroid field in the solar system. There are actually four sets of asteroids grouped into different fields: the main belt, Trojans, scattered disc, and the Kuiper belt.
The asteroid field known as the main belt is a large collection of objects that are in orbit between Mars and Jupiter. The largest known asteroid in the belt is Ceres which accounts for over 25% of the belts total mass. Ceres is also the only asteroid in the belt that is classified as a dwarf planet. Vesta, Hygeia, and Pallas are the other of the four largest bodies in the asteroid field. There have been several space missions that have crossed field. The asteroids are far enough apart that traversing it is easily done. The Dawn space mission to the next to visit the main belt and will visit two of the largest bodies.
In 2004 the near Earth asteroids really came into the public eye because the asteroid Apophis was thought to potentially impact the Earth. That is not really a news-worthy event in itself because several tiny asteroids impact the Earth’s atmosphere each year. What made Apophis stand out was its size. At 270 meters, scientists estimate that the asteroid could have destroyed up to 25% of the life on our planet.
In addition to scaring the average Joe, asteroids offer many scientific benefits. Much of what we know about space has been garnered from studying the metal and other content of asteroids that have impacted the Earth’s surface. Scientists have even managed to revive a bacteria form from a meteorite that is thought to have originated from Mars.
There are some scientists and industrialists that point a future where all of the metals and ores on this planet will be exhausted. They look towards the heavens and envision a time when there will be miners on the largest asteroids extracting the minerals, metals, and perhaps the water that the civilizations on Earth will desperately need to continue their existence.
Asteroid Belt :-The asteroid belt is a region of space between Mars and Jupiter. It is generally called the main belt to distinguish it from the Kuiper belt and the scattered disc. More than half the mass of the belt is is composed by Ceres, Vesta, Pallas, and Hygiea. Ceres makes up nearly 25% of the asteroid belt’s mass by itself. The asteroids range from the size of Ceres down to many that are as small as a dust particle.
The asteroid belt is so thinly populated that several unmanned spacecraft have been able to move through it – this isn’t the dense field of asteroids you see in movies and television. The next mission to pass through the asteroid belt will be the Dawn space mission. Despite these space craft moving safely through the asteroid belt, several of the larger asteroids have collided and formed “families” with the same orbital characteristics and make up.
Asteroid Field :-The asteroid field is usually referred to as the main belt, but it is not the only asteroid field in the solar system. There are actually four sets of asteroids grouped into different fields: the main belt, Trojans, scattered disc, and the Kuiper belt.
The asteroid field known as the main belt is a large collection of objects that are in orbit between Mars and Jupiter. The largest known asteroid in the belt is Ceres which accounts for over 25% of the belts total mass. Ceres is also the only asteroid in the belt that is classified as a dwarf planet. Vesta, Hygeia, and Pallas are the other of the four largest bodies in the asteroid field. There have been several space missions that have crossed field. The asteroids are far enough apart that traversing it is easily done. The Dawn space mission to the next to visit the main belt and will visit two of the largest bodies.
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