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Asteroids

Asteroids are space rocks thought to be the remains left over from the formation of the solar system. They range in size from tiny (the size of a car or so) to truly giant, with at least one - Ceres - gaining dwarf planet status. In our solar system, billions of asteroids are in the asteroid belt, a region around the sun between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter. Others stray from this region, and can potentially post an impact threat to the Earth. At least one interstellar asteroid, called 'Oumuamua, has passed through our solar system. Learn more about asteroids here.

Related Topics: Comets, Meteors, Shooting Stars and Fireballs, Rosetta Spacecraft 

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Leonardo DiCaprio (left) and Jennifer Lawrence portray ignored astronomers in Netflix's "Don't Look Up," a comet impact movie that doubles as a climate change warning.

Climate scientist and Netflix 'Don't Look Up' director talk comet metaphors and global warming (exclusive)

By Elizabeth Howell published

Adam McKay, creator of Netflix's popular satire-comedy movie "Don't Look Up," and climate scientist Kate Marvel talk why the world needs more films like the comet metaphor movie.

A satellite of U.S. Earth-observation company planet has captured a Falcon 9 rocket booster shortly after its successful tenth landing.

Pictures from space! Our image of the day

By Space.com Staff published

3D illustration of an asteroid flying past Earth

A 3,400-foot-wide asteroid will make a safe flyby of Earth next week

By Elizabeth Howell published

A huge asteroid will safely whiz by our planet next week.

An illustration of a hovering-rover concept.

This 'UFO' rover could hover on the moon and asteroids one day

By Doris Elin Urrutia published

Researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) want to engineer a new kind of hovering spacecraft that can operate without air.

Following the asteroid impact that wiped out the dinosaurs, parts of the planet would have been plunged into darkness.

Darkness caused by dino-killing asteroid snuffed out life on Earth in 9 months

By Mindy Weisberger published

After an asteroid struck at the end of the Cretaceous period, debris from wildfires filled the atmosphere and blocked sunlight across Earth, causing ecosystem collapse and extinctions.

Jennifer Lawrence as astronomy grad student Kate Dibiasky and Leonardo DiCaprio as astronomy professor Randall Mindy in director Adam McKay's new satirical film "Don't Look Up."

How a real NASA patch anchors Netflix's 'Don't Look Up' in reality

By Robert Z. Pearlman published

"You've got the patch there. In fact, I was observing a little Latin phrase at the bottom, what does that say?" "'Hic Servare Diem,' which means 'Here to save the day.'"

An artist's depiction of an asteroid hitting Earth.

Mars and Earth likely formed from collisions of moon-sized rocks

By Charles Q. Choi published

Earth and Mars must have formed from collisions between giant moon-sized rocks rather than from clumping together of a huge amount of tiny pebbles, a new study found.

These bits of rock and dust were gathered from the C-type asteroid Ryugu by the spacecraft Hayabusa2.

Bits of asteroid Ryugu are among 'most primordial' materials ever examined

By Nicoletta Lanese published

Two new studies reveal surprising features of the asteroid Ryugu.

An artist's depiction of an asteroid.

UAE looks to build on Mars mission success with tour of the asteroid belt

By Meghan Bartels published

Less than a year after nailing its first interplanetary mission with a flawless Mars orbit insertion, the United Arab Emirates has selected its next destination: the asteroid belt.

extinction event dinosaurs

Curious Kids: How did crocodiles survive the asteroid that killed the dinosaurs?

By Mike Lee published

There are two main reasons. First, crocodiles can live for a very long time without food. Second, they lived in places that were the least affected when the asteroid hit Earth.

don't look up"Don't Look Up", starring Jennifer Lawrence (left) and Leonardo DiCaprio, portrays a fictional comet threat to Earth.

Leonardo DiCaprio: How comet-themed 'Don't Look Up' shows climate crisis as an emergency

By Elizabeth Howell published

The star-studded cast spoke about Netflix's film, which debuts Dec. 10 in a select theater run.

Leonardo DiCaprio Don't Look Up

'Don't Look Up' delivers a punch in comet-themed climate change film satire (review)

By Elizabeth Howell published

Science is perfectly at the forefront of this star-studded story, but will the jokes connect with a wide audience?

The asteroid impact that doomed the dinosaurs may have hit Earth during northern spring, a new study suggests.

Asteroid that wiped out the dinosaurs hit Earth during northern spring, scientists argue

By Meghan Bartels published

The asteroid impact that wiped out most dinosaurs may have taken place during the Northern Hemisphere's spring or early summer, according to new research on the infamous mass extinction.

An artist's impression of a distant asteroid approaching Earth.

'Potentially hazardous' asteroid worth nearly $5 billion will pass by Earth this week, NASA says

By Ben Turner published

The mineral-rich asteroid has an estimated worth of $4.71 billion.

asteroid

Could we really deflect an asteroid heading for Earth? An expert explains NASA's DART mission

By Gail Iles published

A NASA spacecraft the size of a golf cart has been directed to smash into an asteroid, with the intention of knocking it slightly off course.

The interaction between the solar wind and the surface of asteroids may have created Earth's water.

Earth's earliest water may have come from solar wind and space rocks

By Tereza Pultarova published

Samples from asteroid Itokawa collected by a Japanese space probe suggest that Earth's water may have come from the sun.

NASA's DART spacecraft and a Falcon 9 second stage booster that launched it can be seen as two small dots at the center of this image captured a few hours after the mission's launch.

Stargazer in Italy spots NASA's DART asteroid impact probe in night sky after launch

By Tereza Pultarova published

An Italian telescope captured NASA's asteroid-smasher DART shortly after its launch on Tuesday (Nov. 23).

An artist's depiction of an asteroid hitting Earth.

Space rock alert: Should you worry about an asteroid impact?

By Jesse Emspak published

NASA is testing one technique it might use should a large asteroid threaten to collide with Earth. But just how high are the odds of such a dangerous space rock after all? You don't need to panic.

The Lucy mission will study the Trojan asteroids in a bid to shed light on the formation of the solar system.

Lucy mission: NASA's journey to the Trojan asteroids

By Adam Mann, Daisy Dobrijevic published

Reference NASA’s Lucy mission is the first to visit the Trojan asteroids. Lucy will help answer questions about the formation of the solar system.

An artist's depiction of NASA's DART spacecraft flying into the asteroid Dimorphos.

DART timeline: What's next for NASA's asteroid-smacking mission after launch

By Mike Wall published

The DART spacecraft's camera will take its first photos eight days after launch, if all goes according to plan.