Asteroid Apophis. ©2019 NASA
Reporter: Hari Ariyanti
Merdeka.com – The asteroid caused the extinction of the dinosaurs millions of years ago, when a giant space rock hit Earth.
But not all asteroids are Earth destroyers. Asteroids come in a variety of sizes, some small and some very large.
So, what are the largest and smallest asteroids ever recorded in our solar system?
The largest asteroid in the solar system is Ceres, which is nearly 950 kilometers or a quarter the size of the Moon. Meanwhile, the smallest asteroids are more difficult to determine.
But the smallest asteroid officially recognized by the United States Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is known as asteroid 2015 TC25, with a size of 2 meters.
Some definitions state that asteroids must be at least 1 meter in size, but not all scientists agree on this size limit, as quoted from the Live Science page, Thursday (16/3).
Asteroids are thought to have formed at the dawn of the solar system, when the sun was surrounded by a thick cloud of dust. As this dust cooled over tens of millions of years, it began to coalesce into ever larger clumps, which in turn gained mass as they collided and stuck together. Eventually, some of these objects gained enough mass to become planets.
But this tiny bit of mass remains “like crumbs on a table,” explains Simone Marchi, an astronomer at the Southwest Research Institute in Boulder, Colorado. Some of these “crumbs” became asteroids.
Today, most of the asteroids in the solar system are found in the asteroid belt, a 225 million km wide circle of rock and dust orbiting in the space between Mars and Jupiter. Scientists have so far recorded nearly 1 million asteroids. And it is estimated that there are millions more.
As the largest asteroid, Ceres is easily found by telescopes. In 1801, Ceres became the first recognized object in the asteroid belt, according to a NASA report.
In 2006, Ceres was classified as a dwarf planet, the same category as Pluto. But according to NASA, Pluto is wider and 14 times bigger than Ceres.
After Ceres, the other largest asteroid is Vesta, at 525 kilometers.
The smallest asteroid is still a matter of debate.
“There’s no official limit,” said Yan Fernandez, an astronomer at the University of Central Florida.
Telescopes have seen asteroids as small as 91 cm, and there are many small objects orbiting the asteroid belt. However, objects this small usually burn up if they enter the relatively thick atmospheres of planets like Earth, according to NASA.
By this metric, they can be categorized as meteoroids, small bits of space debris that become meteors when they cross the sky (and meteorites when they make it to the surface of a planet).
Fernandez said the size of this asteroid could change and become small. The causes vary, some shrink due to heat pressure when approaching the sun, some collide with other asteroids so that they are crushed or broken.
Also read:
Asteroid Will Hit Earth On Valentine’s Day In 2046
Get Ready, An Asteroid The Size Of 145 Horses Is Approaching Earth
NASA Confirms Large Asteroid That Threatens Humanity to Be Destroyed in the Future
NASA: Asteroid Measuring 111 Feet Approaching Earth
These Five Meteorites Found Could Answer Earth Formation Elements
Researchers Find Dinosaur Legs Crashed By Asteroids 66 Million Years Ago
Large Asteroid Approaching Earth, Scientists Start to Panic
2 of 3 pages
Today, most of the asteroids in the solar system are found in the asteroid belt, a 225 million km wide circle of rock and dust orbiting in the space between Mars and Jupiter. Scientists have so far recorded nearly 1 million asteroids. And it is estimated that there are millions more.
As the largest asteroid, Ceres is easily found by telescopes. In 1801, Ceres became the first recognized object in the asteroid belt, according to a NASA report.
In 2006, Ceres was classified as a dwarf planet, the same category as Pluto. But according to NASA, Pluto is wider and 14 times bigger than Ceres.
After Ceres, the other largest asteroid is Vesta, at 525 kilometers.
3 of 3 pages
The smallest asteroid is still a matter of debate.
“There’s no official limit,” said Yan Fernandez, an astronomer at the University of Central Florida.
Telescopes have seen asteroids as small as 91 cm, and there are many small objects orbiting the asteroid belt. However, objects this small usually burn up if they enter the relatively thick atmospheres of planets like Earth, according to NASA.
By this metric, they can be categorized as meteoroids, small bits of space debris that become meteors when they cross the sky (and meteorites when they make it to the surface of a planet).
Fernandez said the size of this asteroid could change and become small. The causes vary, some shrink due to heat pressure when approaching the sun, some collide with other asteroids so that they are crushed or broken.
(mdk/sir)
