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Space agencies are closely monitoring the activity of some asteroids such as Bennu. However, amid the interest surrounding the asteroid, a study suggests that space rock may actually be hollow.
A study by University of Colorado Boulder researchers analyzed data from NASA’s Osiris-REx spacecraft from asteroid Bennu and found that space rock may actually be hollow. By measuring Bennu’s gravitational field, they found that while the gravitational field was weak, the asteroid rotated rapidly. This would suggest that the asteroid’s core is hollow.
“If you can measure the gravitational field with sufficient accuracy, it places rigid constraints on where the mass is, even if you can’t see it directly,” said Andrew French of NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory and co-author of the study.
This discovery would mean that the asteroid Bennu could end up spinning into nothingness as fragments of its debris would end up all over space. According to Professor Daniel Sheeres, this could happen in a million years. “You could imagine that maybe in a million years or less the whole thing will fly away. It was a bit like someone was on the surface of the asteroid and was throwing these marbles so they could be tracked. Our colleagues were able to deduce the gravitational field in the trajectories these particles took. “
As Bennu completes one turn in a 4.3-hour span, the researchers believe Bennu’s gradual increase in speed and possible hollow center could mean the asteroid would separate completely.
Over the weekend, an asteroid passed safely from Earth. The space rock was referred to as 2020 TY1 and NASA classified the asteroid as a near-Earth object or NEO. TY1 passed the planet in the early hours of Saturday 7 November. The asteroid has approached 0.03763 astronomical units or about 3,500,000 miles from Earth. This is still extremely far away for us, but it is close enough to be visible.
TY1 was spotted traveling through space at a speed of 13 kilometers per second or 29,124 miles per hour. The asteroid was also a relatively large space rock, measuring about 600 feet in diameter.
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