Asteroids
Dawn is Gone
The big day arrived, and nothing could keep that spacecraft on the ground. At 7:34 am EDT NASA's Dawn spacecraft…
Tether to Keep Asteroid Explorers Grounded
Here on Earth, gravity keeps us firmly on solid ground. But when astronauts set foot on some of the more…
Podcast: Asteroid Belt
In the last few weeks we've had many emails saying that our tour of the solar system would not be…
Learning How to Stop Dangerous Asteroids
You know the cliche: it's not a question of if an asteroid will strike the Earth, it's a question of…
Dawn is on the Launch Pad
Despite delays and near cancellation, NASA's Dawn spacecraft is now on the launch pad, all ready to begin its mission…
The Triangle that Skimmed Past the Earth: Asteroid 2002 NY40
In August 2002, a bizarre looking asteroid made its closest approach to the Earth, skimming only 540,000 km above the…
Asteroid Broke Up, and Then it Killed the Dinosaurs
It was a controversial theory when first proposed years ago, but now most paleontologists side with the theory that a…
Animation of a Human Mission to an Asteroid
Although NASA is gearing up to send humans back to the Moon, and eventually Mars, mission planners are also considering…
Dawn Mission Pushed Back to September
One of my favourite upcoming missions is NASA's Dawn spacecraft, set to go into orbit around two different asteroids. It…
Hubble Delivers Photos of Ceres and Vesta
On July 7, 2007 NASA will launch its next explorer into the Solar System. This spacecraft's destinations are the asteroids…