asteroids

Do all asteroids have names?

Newly discovered asteroids receive a provisional designation, which can later change to a definitive name. The provisional designation is composed this way:

If enough records are obtained from the minor body to calculate an orbit, the object is assigned a sequential number (denomination). Example: 99942 Apophis.

How often do objects impact the Earth?

The probability that a smaller body will impact us is related to its dimensions. Small meteoroids impact at all hours (disintegrating like meteors); Other older ones do it on scales of years or centuries.

The graph on the side can give you an idea of how exposed we are (statistically speaking) to an asteroid impact actually causing considerable damage.

The Potentially Hazardous Asteroids (PHAs) are a class of NEOs whose minimum orbital intersection distance with the Earth is 0.05 au or less.

The Turin stopover allows classifying the degree of impact danger associated with a NEO, which ranges from zero risk (0/white) to safe collision (10/red).
* The record was reached by 99942 Apophis (4 in 2004, 0 since 2006)

Finally, it is important to mention that there are various programs that allow the detection and monitoring of NEOs, grouped under the term “Spaceguard”, which is currently proposed to detect the 90% of NEOs with a size of 140 m.

It is hoped that thanks to these efforts, as well as other future initiatives that may arise, it will be possible to accurately track as many asteroids as possible, of which many remain to be discovered.