A classic optics experiment, in space with asteroids and AGNs!
Radio observations of the diffracted shadow cast by an asteroid can be used to nail down its location and determine its size and shape.
Radio observations of the diffracted shadow cast by an asteroid can be used to nail down its location and determine its size and shape.
After accidentally observing the wrong star this paper’s authors discovered a previously-unknown solar twin, a type of star which can help shed light on a number of questions in astronomy.
Apparently, rocky asteroids like our interstellar visitor ‘Oumuamua are likely to be formed in binary stars.
There’s no need to worry about the Earth being sterilized by an asteroid or gamma-ray burst, especially if you happen to be a tardigrade.
Interstellar space should be littered with debris ejected during the formation of planetary systems—but how much? Engelhardt et al. use solar system surveys and simulations to place an upper limit on the number density of asteroids and comets roaming the Milky Way without a parent star.
About 3.8 billion years ago, large impactors were still pelting the Moon, creating huge craters that have survived to this day. Today’s paper explores whether asteroids from the asteroid belt could have been responsible for the majority of these impacts.