Near Earth Objects Essay, Research Paper
Near Earth Objects
What are NEOs? Where do they come from? Do they pose any real threat to
Earth? Can they provide viable space resources? All of these questions are now
under investigation by planetary scientist.There are two highly recognized
research programs that I will discuss with you. The Spaceguard program is
sponsored and run by NASA Ames Space Science Division: Asteroid and Comet Impact
Hazard. Also under the direction of Dr. Tom Gehrels the University of Arizona
has the Spacewatch program.
NEOs can be either asteroid or comets. Ninety percent of the
information that I came across discussed asteroids. Therefore, I will
concentrate on asteroids alone. I’m not fully knowledgeable on the subject but
I did learn a great deal.
What are NEOs? The “Webster’s New World Dictionary” states, “Any of the
small planets between Mars and Jupiter”. The “Funk and Wagnalls Encyclopedia
from Infopedia” states, “One of the many small or minor planets that are members
of the solar system and that move in elliptical orbits primarily between the
orbits of Mars and Jupiter”.
Where dot they come from? The NEOs are small objects (