Discovery of a New and Neighborly Asteroid

Air Date: 03/12/2012
Run Time: 28:50

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Guests:

Jaime Nomen, astronomer, Observatorio Astronómico de La Sagra (La Sagra Observatory)

Topics: Shoemaker NEO Grants, asteroids, near-Earth asteroids, Earth impact hazard

With help from the Planetary Society, astronomers at Spain's La Sagra Observatory have just discovered a big near-Earth object (NEO). The asteroid will fly closer to our planet than many satellites next February. La Sagra's Jaime Nomen tells us how his team made this find. Emily Lakdawalla introduces a new anime character: Japan's IKAROS solar sail! Bill Nye talks about his friend and colleague Neil Tyson's presentation to Congress last week. Bruce Betts provides background info about that new NEO, joins Mat Kaplan for another What's Up review of the night sky, and opens a new space trivia contest.