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(101955) 1999 RQ36
Encyclopedia
1999 RQ36 is an Apollo asteroid discovered by LINEAR
in 1999. The asteroid is the planned target of the OSIRIS-REx
mission which will return samples to Earth for further study. It is listed on the Sentry Risk Table
.
It has a mean diameter of approximately 560 meters and has been observed extensively with the Arecibo Observatory
Planetary Radar and the Goldstone
Deep Space Network
.
A recent dynamical study by Andrea Milani
and collaborators has located a series of eight potential Earth impacts between 2169 and 2199. The cumulative probability of impact is dependent on poorly known physical properties of the object, but is not higher than 0.07% for all eight encounters. To accurately assess 1999 RQ36's probability of Earth impact will require a detailed shape model of the asteroid and additional observations (either from the ground or from spacecraft visiting the object) to determine the magnitude of the Yarkovsky acceleration
.
Separately, 1999 RQ36 has been considered many times as the target of spacecraft missions, including OSIRIS-REx
, due to the low delta-v
required to reach it from Earth orbit. NASA announced on May 25, 2011, that OSIRIS-REx
had been selected as part of NASA
's New Frontiers Program. The spacecraft will launch in 2016, reach the asteroid in 2020 and return samples to Earth
in 2023.
Lincoln Near-Earth Asteroid Research
The Lincoln Near-Earth Asteroid Research project is a cooperative project between the United States Air Force, NASA, and MIT's Lincoln Laboratory for the systematic discovery and tracking of near-Earth asteroids. LINEAR was responsible for the majority of asteroid detections since 1998 until...
in 1999. The asteroid is the planned target of the OSIRIS-REx
OSIRIS-REx
Origins Spectral Interpretation Resource Identification Security Regolith Explorer is a planetary science mission, the third selected in the New Frontiers Program. The mission will study and return a sample of a carbonaceous asteroid to Earth for detailed analyses in about 2023...
mission which will return samples to Earth for further study. It is listed on the Sentry Risk Table
Sentry (monitoring system)
Sentry is a highly automated collision monitoring system that continually scans the most current asteroid catalog for possibilities of future impact with Earth over the next 100 years...
.
It has a mean diameter of approximately 560 meters and has been observed extensively with the Arecibo Observatory
Arecibo Observatory
The Arecibo Observatory is a radio telescope near the city of Arecibo in Puerto Rico. It is operated by SRI International under cooperative agreement with the National Science Foundation...
Planetary Radar and the Goldstone
Goldstone
-Places:*Goldstone, a small village in Shropshire, England*Goldstone Lake, a dry lake in the Mojave Desert of San Bernardino County, California*Goldstone Vallis, a valley on Mercury-Things:* Goldstone , a gemstone simulant...
Deep Space Network
Deep Space Network
The Deep Space Network, or DSN, is a world-wide network of large antennas and communication facilities that supports interplanetary spacecraft missions. It also performs radio and radar astronomy observations for the exploration of the solar system and the universe, and supports selected...
.
A recent dynamical study by Andrea Milani
Andrea Milani (mathematician)
Andrea Milani Comparetti is an Italian mathematician based at Pisa University interested in topics as celestial mechanics, asteroids, Near Earth Objects , and the BepiColombo mission. Milani is an expert on asteroid impacts....
and collaborators has located a series of eight potential Earth impacts between 2169 and 2199. The cumulative probability of impact is dependent on poorly known physical properties of the object, but is not higher than 0.07% for all eight encounters. To accurately assess 1999 RQ36's probability of Earth impact will require a detailed shape model of the asteroid and additional observations (either from the ground or from spacecraft visiting the object) to determine the magnitude of the Yarkovsky acceleration
Yarkovsky effect
The Yarkovsky effect is a force acting on a rotating body in space caused by the anisotropic emission of thermal photons, which carry momentum...
.
Separately, 1999 RQ36 has been considered many times as the target of spacecraft missions, including OSIRIS-REx
OSIRIS-REx
Origins Spectral Interpretation Resource Identification Security Regolith Explorer is a planetary science mission, the third selected in the New Frontiers Program. The mission will study and return a sample of a carbonaceous asteroid to Earth for detailed analyses in about 2023...
, due to the low delta-v
Delta-v
In astrodynamics a Δv or delta-v is a scalar which takes units of speed. It is a measure of the amount of "effort" that is needed to change from one trajectory to another by making an orbital maneuver....
required to reach it from Earth orbit. NASA announced on May 25, 2011, that OSIRIS-REx
OSIRIS-REx
Origins Spectral Interpretation Resource Identification Security Regolith Explorer is a planetary science mission, the third selected in the New Frontiers Program. The mission will study and return a sample of a carbonaceous asteroid to Earth for detailed analyses in about 2023...
had been selected as part of NASA
NASA
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration is the agency of the United States government that is responsible for the nation's civilian space program and for aeronautics and aerospace research...
's New Frontiers Program. The spacecraft will launch in 2016, reach the asteroid in 2020 and return samples to Earth
Earth
Earth is the third planet from the Sun, and the densest and fifth-largest of the eight planets in the Solar System. It is also the largest of the Solar System's four terrestrial planets...
in 2023.
External links
- Earth Impact Risk Summary: 101955 1999 RQ36 (Years: 2169-2199) - JPL near-Earth object website
- Orbit parameters - NASA website
- Temperature History and Dynamical Evolution of (101955) 1999 RQ 36: A Potential Target for Sample Return from a Primitive Asteroid (2011 ApJ 728 L42)