When an Asteroid Gets Close to Earth, we get a Rare Opportunity to Learn What it’s Made of

There's a lot of insight into a variety of phenomena that can be provided by gravity calculations. The rocket equation is dependent on gravity. The MIT team thinks they have a new use for gravity calculations, understanding the interior density of asteroids.

A class at MIT called "Essentials of Planetary Science" focused on the formation of objects in the solar system. Many college students know about the semester-capping final project.

One of the undergraduates in the class wanted to answer a simple question with his final project, and he asked if an asteroid would do anything when it passed by Earth. The answer is yes after some modeling based on other equations in the class.

The professor of planetary science was interested in the details of the project. The code was written to model what happened to an asteroid as it passed near Earth. The asteroid's shape, size, and density were the most important factors in determining that.

Density is important in determining what asteroids are made of. Potential asteroid miners would be interested in that. It's useful to know if you want to change the subject.

The DART mission was a success. Many asteroids are referred to as "rubble piles". If you hit a section made of solid metal, it will make more of an orbital change than if you hit a section made of probes.

Where you hit an asteroid and how dense it is can affect the effectiveness of any potential missions. Apophis, which is not causing an immediate threat to the Earth, is one of the asteroids where this information could be of great use.

This modeling system will be tested to see if it will be able to predict the shape and density of asteroids. It will have a close encounter with Earth in 2029, and Dinsmore and de Wit hope that interested astronomer, both amateur and professional, will collect enough data on it that they can compare it to additional simulations they have developed for a wide variety of sizes, shapes and densities of asteroid

Scientists develop a series of models based on different quantities and decide which is the best fit for data collected on an actual object. Researchers should be able to tease out what the interior of an asteroid would be in a close encounter with us. There is more reason to keep an eye on near- Earth asteroids.

You can learn more.

The method for decoding asteroid interiors could be useful.

The interiors of asteroids are trained through close encounters.

Astronomers are looking inside an asteroid for the first time.

The upcoming asteroid mission will be able to peer 100 meters under the surface.