NASA observes activity on 15 more asteroids

By Alimat Aliyeva

With the help of powerful space telescopes, astronomers observe
the “activity” of some unusual asteroids, their comet-like tails,
as well as clouds of gas and dust. As part of NASA’s Active
Asteroids project, it was announced that activity had been detected
on fifteen asteroids, challenging traditional knowledge about the
Solar System, Azernews reports, citing foreign
media outlets.

More than 8 thousand volunteers analyzed more than 430 thousand
images from the dark energy camera (DECam) on the Victor M. Blanco
telescope in Chile to find these fifteen rare objects. Nine
volunteers co-authored an article on the results, which has now
been published in the Astronomical Journal.

Volunteer Virgilio Gonano from Udine, Italy, said: “For an
amateur astronomer like me, it’s like a dream come true.
Congratulations to the friends who have checked all the signals and
pictures.”

The study of these rare active asteroids provides scientists
with additional information about the formation and evolution of
the Solar System, including the origin of water on Earth. These
objects can also help in future space exploration, as the same ices
that form comet tails can power rockets or provide breathing air
for astronauts.

Tiffany Shaw-Diaz, a volunteer from Dayton, Ohio, said: “I have
been a member of the Active Asteroids team since the initial data
analysis process began. It would not be an exaggeration to say that
this project has become a significant part of my life. I look
forward to classifying topics every day, if time or health permits,
and it is a great honor for me to work regularly with such
respected scientists.”

The Active Asteroids Project was founded by Colin Orion
Chandler, a researcher at the Asteroids and Other Celestial Bodies
Project at the University of Washington and the DiRAC
Institute.

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