The Arecibo Observatory in Puerto Rico is following an asteroid approaching Earth this week and while it poses no threat, it appears to know our planet is facing a pandemic.
The Arecibo Observatory in Puerto Rico is following an asteroid approaching Earth this week and while it poses no threat, it appears to know our planet is facing a pandemic.
“The small-scale topographic features such as hills and ridges on one end of asteroid 1998 OR2 are fascinating scientifically,” says Anne Virkki, head of Planetary Radar at the observatory. “But since we are all thinking about COVID-19 these features make it look like 1998 OR2 remembered to wear a mask.”
The National Science Foundation facility, which is managed by the University of Central Florida, has a team of experts who monitors near-Earth asteroids. This asteroid is in a special class of near-Earth asteroids called Potentially Hazardous Objects (PHOs).
PHOs are bigger than 140 meters (about 500 feet) and come within 5 million miles of Earth’s orbit. No known PHO poses an immediate danger to the Earth, but observations like those conducted at the Arecibo Observatory are used to determine their future trajectories.
Read more at University of Central Florida
Image: Anne Virkki, head of Planetary Radar at the Arecibo Observatory wears her face mask with a range-Doppler radar image of asteroid 1998 OR2. (Credit: Arecibo Observatory)
