Asteroids
Asteroids are airless remains of the formation of the solar system 1.2 billion years ago. They are sometimes referred to as minor planets and most of them are in the main asteroid belt. Asteroids reside in several different places but in our solar system, most of them reside in the Asteroid Belt. The asteroid belt is between Mars and Jupiter and contains millions of asteroids that can be anywhere from 33 feet to 329 miles long. Scientists estimate that there are around 1.1-1.9 million larger asteroids(longer than 1 kilometer) and millions of asteroids that are smaller than 1 kilometer. There are several different types of asteroids but the most prominent ones are those of C, S, and M. C-Type asteroids are chondrite and stony. They are normally made of clay and silicate and are darker than any other asteroids. S-type Asteroids are stony and made of silicate and nickel iron. M-type asteroids are the only type of asteroids that are metallic. They have the most interesting composition as it depends on how far away from the sun they formed. If it formed close to the sun the iron on the outside may melt and force lava out of the asteroid.Asteroids are named using a very interesting system. All Asteroids are named by the IAU or International Astronomical Union Committee. They are not very strict on the naming of asteroids and that's why we have asteroids with names like Mr.Spock and an asteroid that was named after the singer Frank Zappa. Right now they have named 22,000 asteroids and that number is expected to increase as time goes by.Before we begin the several methods you should understand that most asteroids cannot hit earth and that though several asteroids enter earth it is rare for any asteroid to go through the earth's atmosphere. The reason being is friction, high speed objects that try to hit earth hit several air molecules before it can hit the surface of the earth. The friction that occurs between the asteroids and the air molecules cause them to burn. Because of this whenever you see an asteroid reaching earth it normally has a tail of flames. People name those shooting stars.The most famous Asteroid impact is the Chicxulub Impact which as many know has brought the end of the dinosaurs. There is still a crater near Mexico which shows the sheer size of the asteroid. It occurred 66 million years ago and the asteroid that made the impact is thought to be somewhere from 6-9 miles in diameter when it hit the earth. It made a crater that is 93 miles in diameter.Earth's very first line of defense comes from our ability to predict when and where asteroids may land. NASA uses its Planetary Defense Coordination Office(PDCO) to observe Near Earth Objects that could present a potential threat to our Earth and our Society. There are other projects like NEOWISE and Pan-STARRS that constantly look at the planet’s sky for potential threats to humanity. NEOWISE stands for Near-Earth Object Wide-Field Infrared Survey Explorer and Pan-STARRS stands for Panoramic Survey Telescope and Rapid Response System. The second way NASA plans to stop asteroids and the most researched way to stop an asteroid is to launch a rocket and hit an asteroid off of the trajectory to earth. In 2021 NASA launched its DART mission. DART stands for Double Asteroid Redirection Test. That will attempt to push a moon of Didymos, better known as Didymoon, off of the orbit of Didymoon. Many scientists and engineers alike believe that a strong Kinetic Impact may be the best bet for trying to push an asteroid. Though this may sound like a concept that comes from a movie like star wars it actually is a potential method that could be used to redirect an asteroid. The basic gist of the gravity tractor is to launch a spacecraft next to the asteroid and over time the gravity that comes between the spacecraft and the asteroid will shift the asteroid’s path and render it off course. Though this may work it does have its shortcomings as it would take a very long time to make an asteroid go of course. This method was the literal concept of a movie called Armageddon and it is a last resort method where they would explode a nuclear bomb on the surface of the asteroid to either set it off course or destroy the asteroid into small enough pieces so that it causes less damage than it originally would.In 2032 there is a 1/47 or 2% chance that an asteroid in 2032. Though this is a low chance scientists are on high alert and are currently tracking the asteroid. It is as big as the statue of liberty and if it impacts earth it will definitely cause some damage. However you should not worry about the asteroid because it will not be big enough to cause major damage across the world. The asteroid that hit and killed the dinosaurs was 10 kilometers in diameter.
