[imagesource:Pixabay]

There’s been a renewed interest in asteroids lately, especially after the Hubble Telescope got up close and personal with Asteroid 16 Psyche, which scientists believe could be the metallic core of a planet that didn’t form.

We can’t access Earth’s core, so taking a closer look at the asteroid would be pretty cool.

Then there’s NASA’s Osiris-Rex, which high-fived Asteroid Bennu, collecting some invaluable data that will improve our understanding of the universe.

Fun fact – Asteroid Bennu is on NASA’s watchlist for asteroids that could impact Earth at some stage in the future, with scientists predicting impact in the second half of the 22nd century.

Also on that watchlist, you’ll find Asteroid 99942 Apophis, which could be heading our way as early as 2068.

Here’s Science Alert with some calming words:

For every asteroid we see coming in our direction, there’s a number we miss until they fly on by.

And even for those we know about well in advance, it can still be hard to nail down just how likely an Earth collision actually is.

Asteroid Apophis is one such asteroid, whose orbit could pass a little too close to Earth for comfort.

Scientists have decided that it’s unlikely that it will hit us on its next fly-by in 2029, but say they can’t rule out a collision in 2068.

The risk currently sits in the region of a one in 150 000 chance that we’re doomed, but if it does make its way through the atmosphere, we could be looking at an explosion larger than an atomic bomb.

Last month, astronomer David Tholen from the University of Hawaii presented his and his colleague Davide Farnocchia’s research after keeping an eye on Apophis for four nights.

They were able to get incredibly precise information about the asteroid, and were able to detect Yarkovsky acceleration – meaning that the asteroid radiates heat more strongly on its Sun facing hemisphere than its shadow side, which causes an asymmetrical push, slightly changing its orbit.

If you work that acceleration into the asteroid’s model…I’ll hand this over to the experts:

…”that basically means that the 2068 impact scenario is still in play,” explains Tholen in his presentation.

“We need to track this asteroid very carefully – obviously the 2029 close approach is critical.”

It’s critical because the close proximity (closer than some of our satellites) to the Earth will allow scientists to get a closer look at Apophis to see what it’s up to.

“Knowledge is the first line of planetary defence, and the 2029 Apophis encounter is a once-per-thousand-year opportunity,” the Lunar and Planetary Institute states.

“We have less than a decade to plan Earth-based and possible in-situ missions whose measurements can deliver unprecedented detailed knowledge on the physical nature of Apophis as the prototype example (poster child) of potentially hazardous asteroids.”

NASA put together an animation roughly a year ago to show what that fly-by is going to look like:

The plan is to send an Osiris-Rex-type explorer on a mission to do some digging.

Godspeed, little guy.

[source:sciencealert]