2062 Aten
2062 Aten is a near-Earth asteroid and the first identified member of the Aten group, which orbits the sun in a path that is smaller than Earth's orbit. Discovered on January 7, 1976, by planetary scientist Eleanor Francis Helin at Palomar Observatory, 2062 Aten is of particular interest due to its proximity to Earth, potentially coming within 1 AU (approximately 149.6 million kilometers) of the sun. The term "Aten" derives from the name of the Egyptian sun god, reflecting the asteroid's close solar orbit. Near-Earth asteroids (NEAs) like 2062 Aten are thought to originate from the asteroid belt but can be nudged into closer orbits through gravitational interactions and collisions.
Aten asteroids, which include 2062 Aten, are characterized by their nearly circular orbits that cross Earth's path, raising concerns about potential impacts. Such near-Earth objects are monitored by various space agencies, including NASA, through programs designed to detect and track potentially hazardous asteroids. Recent advances in technology have allowed for innovative projects like the Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART), aimed at testing methods to alter the course of asteroids and mitigate impact threats. Understanding 2062 Aten and similar asteroids is crucial for planetary defense and ongoing research into the early solar system's formation.
2062 Aten
FIELDS OF STUDY: Astronomy; Cosmology; Asteroid Impact Avoidance
ABSTRACT: 2062 Aten is in a class of space objects known as Aten asteroids, which for the most part orbit between the sun and Earth. Atens are near-Earth asteroids (NEAs), which are important because they both provide insight into the early solar system and are close enough to strike Earth. 2062 Aten was the first Aten asteroid to be identified.
Near-Earth Asteroids
2062 Aten was the first of the Aten objects to be identified. Asteroids are irregular objects made of rock, metal, and minerals that are larger than meteors and travel in a circular or oval orbit around another celestial body, such as the sun or Earth. Studying the material in asteroids is valuable because asteroids are thought to be made up of remnants of the early solar system.
Asteroids are defined by their orbits and fall into three main groups. The largest of these is the asteroid belt. This irregular ring of asteroids is located between the orbits of Jupiter and Mars in an area ranging from about 2.12 to 3.3 AU from the sun (about 317 million to 493 million kilometers, or 197 to 306 million miles). Another group of asteroids in the same vicinity orbit Jupiter and are known as the Trojans. The group of asteroids that orbit in the area between the sun and Earth are known as near-Earth asteroids (NEA). Scientists believe that NEAs started out in the asteroid belt but were pushed out by collisions with other asteroids and pulled into a closer orbit with the sun by gravitational forces. NEAs belong to a broader category of space bodies called near-Earth objects (NEOs), which also includes comets. NEAs can orbit as close as about 0.3 AU (about 45 million kilometers or 29 million miles) from Earth.
Characteristics of Aten Asteroids
Several types of NEAs are differentiated by their orbit paths and distances from the sun. NEA families include Aten, Apollo, Amor, and Atira. An individual asteroid can change categories if its orbit is altered by forces such as collisions and gravity. Aten asteroids orbit in a relatively close and nearly circular path that is smaller than Earth’s orbit. At its closest, an Aten asteroid comes within 1 AU (about 149.6 million kilometers or 93 million miles) of the sun; at the aphelion, or greatest distance from the sun, of its orbit, it is more than 1 AU away. This means its orbit both takes less than a year and crosses over Earth’s orbit. One of the reasons that scientists are so interested in Aten asteroids is because they come so close to Earth.
Discovery of 2062 Aten
Planetary scientist Eleanor Francis Helin discovered 2062 Aten, the first Aten asteroid to be identified, at the Palomar Observatory in California, on January 7, 1976. The name Aten comes from the name of the Egyptian sun god. Helin discovered 2062 Aten using a Schmidt photographic telescope. Helin was a leader in the discovery and study of NEAs and was instrumental in establishing the Palomar Planet-Crossing Asteroid Survey (PCAS). Between 1973 and its end in 1995, PCAS identified sixty-five NEAs, enabling scientists to track these potentially dangerous objects.
Potential NEA Impacts
NEOs that come close enough to pose a threat to life on Earth are called potentially hazardous asteroids (PHAs). Scientists believe that one of these struck Earth 65 million years ago in Chicxulub, Mexico, which may have led to the Cretaceous-Tertiary extinction that wiped out the dinosaurs.
More recently, in Russia, the explosion of small NEAs in Earth’s atmosphere resulted in significant damage to an uninhabited area of Tunguska in 1908. In 2013, a similar event shattered windows and rocked buildings in the city of Chelyabinsk. Because of the potential for Earth impact, scientists from the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) established the Near-Earth Object Program (NEOP).
Working with teams worldwide and using state-of-the-art equipment such as radar and robotic spacecraft, NEOP searches for and monitors asteroids such as 2062 Aten. NASA also created the Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART), the world's first full-scale mission to test technology used to defend Earth against collisions with asteroids. It launched a high-speed spacecraft at an asteroid to see if the impact would change the asteroid's course. The impact is predicted to occur on September 26, 2022.
PRINCIPAL TERMS
- asteroid: small, rocky space objects that orbit other larger celestial bodies such as the sun and planets.
- Aten objects: asteroids that orbit between Earth and the sun and are classified as near-Earth asteroids. Aten asteroids have a semimajor axis, or half the greatest diameter of its orbit, of less than 1 astronomical unit (AU).
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