A rare stargazing spectacle will unfold on Friday, April 13, 2029, as the asteroid Apophis passes closer than satellites over Europe and Africa in a true once-in-a-lifetime event.
The asteroid is on the European Space Agency's Risk List, but poses no threat to Earth or the moon during the close approach.
This offers us a glimpse of the discovery surge scientists expect to occur once full operations begin.
Europe's Hera spacecraft has completed a major deep-space maneuver, setting it on course to rendezvous late this year with the asteroid system targeted by NASA's DART mission back in 2022.
The asteroid will make a close approach to Earth just three days following its discovery.
NASA has used advanced imaging techniques to peer inside samples of asteroid Bennu, discovering extensive networks of cracks running throughout the rock particles.
A sample collected by the Hayabusa 2 spacecraft from the spinning top-like asteroid contained the nucleobases adenine, guanine, cytosine, thymine, and uracil.
The James Webb Space Telescope has revealed our lunar companion is safe for now from an asteroid impact.
For nearly a quarter-century, the nonprofit B612 Foundation has helped scientists track dangerous asteroids and educated the public about the threats space rocks pose to Earth.
The discovery is just the latest to come from the asteroid sample, which dates back to the dawn of the solar system.
