Hey, Space Placers!
NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope recently captured these images of the asteroid 2024 YR4 using both its NIRCam (Near-Infrared Camera) and MIRI (Mid-Infrared Instrument). Data from NIRCam shows reflected light, while the MIRI observations show thermal light. Download the full-resolution image. Credit: NASA, ESA, CSA, STScI, A Rivkin (JHU APL).
Remember asteroid 2024 YR4 that for a time was thought to pose an impact threat to Earth?
JWST has observed the space rock and gotten some good data:
"We found that the thermal properties of 2024 YR4, in other words how quickly it heats up and cools down, and how hot it is at its current distance from the Sun, are not like what we see in larger asteroids. We think this is likely a combination of its very fast spin and a lack of fine-grained sand on its surface. We’ll need more data to say for sure, but it seems consistent with a surface dominated by rocks that are maybe fist-sized or larger. And of course, our main goal was measuring the size of 2024 YR4, which we estimate at about 60 meters (200 feet). That’s just about the height of a 15-story building."
We'll learn more on this space rock when more observations will be made in May. There is some speculation that 2024 YR4 has a chance to impact the Moon:
"Experts at NASA’s Center for Near Earth Object Studies at the agency’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory have updated 2024 YR4’s chance of impacting the Moon on Dec. 22, 2032 from 1.7% as of late February to 3.8% based on the Webb data and observations from ground-based telescopes. There is still a 96.2% chance that the asteroid will miss the Moon. In the small chance that the asteroid were to impact, it would not alter the Moon’s orbit.
After mid-April, asteroid 2024 YR4 will be too far and faint to be observed by ground-based telescopes but Webb will observe the asteroid again in May."
Sky Guy in VA
No comments:
Post a Comment