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Asteroid tracking can be difficult because of their constant movement through space.
Astronomers have asked for the public’s help in their asteroid tracking project involving 2010 NY65 and 2002 KL6.
The Las Cumbres Observatory invites everyone to help astronomers track a pair of asteroids that cruise the Earth.
As opposed to traditional observatories, Las Cumbres is a network of 18 telescopes located in different regions around the globe.
Asteroid tracking can be difficult to organize, even when using advanced technology. The fact that the objects move through space makes them hard to stop.
The solution was to send emails with a link that would release images from the Las Cumbres Observatory. The viewer could, therefore, make live observations of the sky, and inform the scientists when they notice any unusual activity.
The image request should be scheduled by sending an email to the asteroid tracker team. Once the asteroids are identified, the observatory will create a compilation of photos that would recreate the object’s travel through space.
Scientists chose two asteroids that gained their interest, and that should be passing Earth around the Asteroid Day event. Therefore, they took the opportunity to engage the public in a valuable sky research, while celebrating the importance of space objects.
The two asteroids in question originated from the belt between Mars and Jupiter. Their orbit modified and they got projected towards Earth. There is no immediate impact threat on either of the cases.
The researchers will further study the images found by the public in order to obtain more information on the surface, the composition and the rotation speed of the two asteroids.
While there is no concern for immediate impacts, scientists are interested to gain more data on the asteroids behavior when approaching the Earth. In deep space, the objects are even more difficult to observe.
One dramatic event in the history of asteroids was the crash of a hundred feet long cosmic object in Tunguska, Siberia. The last century’s blast demolished an area of over 800 square miles and released a force equivalent to 100 tons of explosive substance.
Recently, scientists discovered a medium-sized asteroid that was circling the Earth from a distance. They were surprised to find out about its existence so late, as the object had a constant orbit for over a century. There is no danger of impact in this case either; nonetheless, scientists want to know more about what happens in our planet’s vicinity and who are our space visitors.
The Asteroid Day event aims to educate the public on asteroids and the origins of our Universe.
Image Source: YouTube
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