The pioneering U.S. DoD Orbital Express mission's ASTRO spacecraft took this photo of its partner NextSat over the Sinai Peninsula during complex autonomous maneuvering on June 16th. See a mission report below. Credit: DARPA.
Contents on 7 July '07
- Minor-Object News -- five items
- Minor-Object Science -- none yet today
- IAU Minor Planet Center
- NEOCP Activity -- one listing: 1 new
- New MPECs -- one MPEC
- Observers -- sixteen observing facilities
- Impact Risk Monitoring -- nothing to report
- Chronology
Resources:
- Consolidated Risk Tables - CRT page
- Ephemerides for risk-rated objects
- Ephemerides for small asteroids
Navigation tips: Use the << and >> arrows on the menus for each regular section (Observers, Risks, etc.) to move to the previous and next day's news for that section. Use the Index menu item to access specific days this year with a calendar interface. And use the all-up news archive to access news anytime since A/CC began in early 2002. To keep track of what's new each day, watch the Chronology section.
Minor-Object News on 7 July '07
- "The Adventures of ASTRO and NextSat," Science@NASA 6 July - Quote: "[Technologies] proven by Orbital Express could revolutionize the way space is explored, making it possible within the next decade to refuel and repair space vehicles without the touch of a human hand."
- "Mysterious space rock recovered in Woburn determined to be radioactive," WHDH-TV 7 July - Quote: "Experts say the rock-like object ... is not a meteorite [but] probably is something from space and is radioactive." - Note: See also a June 21st report.
- "NASA Postpones Asteroid Probe's Launch to July 15," Space.com 7 July - Quote: "Should the mission miss its July window, NASA could reattempt the space shot between September and October for an added cost of $25 million for new rocket components. But by late October, Vesta and Ceres will be moving away from one another, making a rendezvous with both asteroids difficult for Dawn for any later launch attempts."
- Dawn launch delayed again: NASA's Dawn mission is reporting today simply that "The Dawn spacecraft launch has been postponed until no earlier than Sunday, July 15," a week from tomorrow. Spaceflight Now reports that the lack of down-range telemetry reception capability is the problem, and notes that "Dawn's current launch opportunity closes July 19" but "another one opens in September."
- "The Sun's Crowded Delivery Room," PSRD 6 July - Quote: "Martin Bizzarro and his colleagues ... made high-precision measurements of iron and nickel isotopes [that suggest] the Sun's nursery contained [extemely active massive stars that dispersed aluminum-26 (26Al) and] caused collapse of interstellar gas and dust to cause formation of the Sun and its protoplanetary disk. A million years later [a nearby] massive star exploded, ejecting [iron-60] 60Fe from its interior... [Thus] the oldest planetesimals to form in the solar system did not contain any [60Fe], which decays to nickel-60 (60Ni) ... yet somewhat younger materials did contain it. In contrast, [26Al] was relatively uniformly distributed... Cosmochemists welcome [these results, which will] start a new round of meteorite analyses... In fact, previous results have not observed the deficiency in 60Fe that Bizzarro reports. Besides replicating the measurements, there are other tests to perform, such as searching for 60Fe in a greater range of meteorites and in specific components in meteorites (for example, individual chondrules)."
NEOCP Activity on 7 July '07
The MPC's NEO Confirmation Page has 1 listing: 1 new
When last checked at 2357 UTC today, the Minor Planet Center's NEO discovery Confirmation Page (NEOCP) had one new listing. This was a "one nighter." So far Major News has counted a total of two objects listed on the NEOCP at some point today.
New MPECs on 7 July '07
Minor Planet Electronic Circulars
As of last check at 2357 UTC, there has been one MPEC issued today from the International Astronomical Union's Minor Planet Center in Cambridge, Massachusetts.
<< DOU on 7 July '07 >> MPEC 2007-N20 - "06:06 UT" - Daily Orbit Update
- Observations of small asteroids (H>22.0)
- K07M04B 2007 MB4 (arc=22 days, H=22.6 ~102m) from Powell Obs. (July 6.21-22p4) and Great Shefford Obs. (July 6.98p3)
- K07L19T 2007 LT19 (arc=17 days, H=25.4 ~28m) from Tim Spahr via Whipple Obs. (June 22.37-38p2)
- Observations of other objects
- K07M24C 2007 MC24 (arc=12 days, H=19.5 ~426m) from Powell Obs. (July 6.31-32p3)
- K07M24B 2007 MB24 (i=47.8°, arc=13 days, H=18.5 ~676m) from Powell Obs. (July 6.20-21p4), Guidestar Obs. (July 6.90-91p3), Great Shefford Obs. (July 6.97-98p4), and Begues Obs. (July 7.02p3)
- K07M20T 2007 MT20 (arc=13 days, H=18.6 ~645m) from Powell Obs. (July 6.19-20p4), Eschenberg Obs. (July 6.89p7), Begues Obs. (July 7.04p3), and Greiner Research Obs. (July 7.15-16p8)
- K07M13M 2007 MM13 (i=38.2°, arc=13 days, H=17.6 ~1.02 km) from Powell Obs. (July 6.18p4)
- K07M13L 2007 ML13 (arc=15 days, H=20.1 ~323m) from Begues Obs. (July 6.91p4)
- K07M04C 2007 MC4 (arc=17 days, H=21.1 ~204m) from Powell Obs. (July 6.15p1 & 6.25p5)
- K07M00H 2007 MH (arc=19 days, H=20.9 ~224m) from Powell Obs. (July 6.28p5)
- K07L32R 2007 LR32 (arc=43 days, H=17.1 ~1.29 km) from Begues Obs. (July 7.07p4)
- K07L15B 2007 LB15 (arc=24 days, H=19.5 ~426m) from Guidestar Obs. (July 6.91-94p3) and Begues Obs. (July 7.03p3)
- K07L15A 2007 LA15 (arc=23 days, H=19.4 ~446m) from Madonna di Dossobuono Obs. (July 5.91-93p3)
- K07L08V 2007 LV8 (arc=25 days, H=20.0 ~339m) from the Mt. Lemmon Survey (MLS) (July 4.25-26p4), Madonna di Dossobuono Obs. (July 5.88-90p4), and Begues Obs. (July 6.90p3)
- K07L00L 2007 LL (arc=28 days, H=20.4 ~282m) from Astronomical Research Obs. (ARO) (July 6.10-11p2)
- K07L00F 2007 LF (arc=30 days, H=20.5 ~269m) from Capannoli Obs. (July 6.98p1)
- K07E88K 2007 EK88 (arc=114 days, H=21.5 ~170m) from ARO (July 6.12-14p3)
- K06X00A 2006 XA (arc=218 days, H=17.4 ~1.12 km) from Wildberg Obs. (July 6.97-98p5)
- K06S06C 2006 SC6 (arc=3 opp, H=18.1 ~812m) from Wildberg Obs. (July 7.04p2)
- K06R36O 2006 RO36 (arc=2 opp, H=18.0 ~851m) from Wildberg Obs. (July 7.02-03p4)
- K06J25X 2006 JX25 (arc=2 opp, H=20.1 ~323m) from the Sloan Digital Sky Survey (SDSS) (2003 Oct. 22.24p2 & 2003 Oct. 24.23-24p2)
- K06C00G 2006 CG (arc=3 opp, H=19.1 ~513m) from Spahr/Whipple (June 21.31p2)
- K05U06J 2005 UJ6 (arc=2 opp, H=21.5 ~170m) from Andrew Becker via Apache Point Obs. (2005 Sept. 30.46p2)
- K04J00A 2004 JA (arc=3 opp, H=17.9 ~891m) from Spahr/Whipple (June 22.18p2)
- K03U10B 2003 UB10 (arc=3 opp, H=18.3 ~741m) from Becker/Apache Point (2005 Oct. 14.35p2)
- K03H02F 2003 HF2 (q=0.361 AU, arc=4 opp, H=19.5 ~426m) from Eschenberg Obs. (July 6.86p7) and Guidestar Obs. (July 6.87-89p3)
- K02K04F 2002 KF4 (i=37.2°, Q=4.571 AU, arc=3 opp, H=17.2 ~1.23 km) from the Siding Spring Survey (SSS) (July 4.47-50p4)
- J99R32D 1999 RD32 (Q=4.674 AU, arc=3 opp, H=16.4 ~1.78 km) from SDSS (1999 Oct. 14.30p2)
- J95L00G 1995 LG (i=43.6°, q=0.223 AU, arc=4 opp, H=18.7 ~616m) from Eschenberg Obs. (July 6.87-88p3)
- E5656 145656 4788 P-L from New Millennium Obs. (July 5.88-94p9) and Begues Obs. (July 6.88-89p3)
- 89830 89830 2002 CE from SSS (July 4.76-78p4)
- 24443 24443 2000 OG from Begues Obs. (July 6.92-93p3)
Observers on 7 July '07
Sixteen observing facilities appear in today's MPECs.
| 7054 | Andrew Becker via Apache Point Obs. in New Mexico, 2 in MPEC 2007-N20 -- 2005 UJ6, 2003 UB10 |
| H55 | Astronomical Research Obs. in Illinois, 2 in MPEC 2007-N20 -- 2007 LL, 2007 EK88 |
| 170 | Begues Obs. in Spain, 8 in MPEC 2007-N20 -- 2007 MB24, 2007 MT20, 2007 ML13, 2007 LR32, 2007 LB15, 2007 LV8, 145656, 24443 |
| B09 | Capannoli Obs. in Italy, 1 in MPEC 2007-N20 -- 2007 LF |
| 151 | Eschenberg Obs. in Switzerland, 3 in MPEC 2007-N20 -- 2007 MT20, 2003 HF2, 1995 LG |
| J95 | Great Shefford Obs. in England, 2 in MPEC 2007-N20 -- 2007 MB4, 2007 MB24 |
| H51 | Greiner Research Obs. in Wisconsin, 1 in MPEC 2007-N20 -- 2007 MT20 |
| A17 | Guidestar Obs. in Germany, 3 in MPEC 2007-N20 -- 2007 MB24, 2007 LB15, 2003 HF2 |
| 560 | Madonna di Dossobuono Obs. in Italy, 2 in MPEC 2007-N20 -- 2007 LA15, 2007 LV8 |
| G96 | Mt. Lemmon Survey in Arizona, 1 in MPEC 2007-N20 -- 2007 LV8 |
| A24 | New Millennium Obs. in Italy, 1 in MPEC 2007-N20 -- 145656 |
| 649 | Powell Obs. in Kansas, 7 in MPEC 2007-N20 -- 2007 MB4, 2007 MC24, 2007 MB24, 2007 MT20, 2007 MM13, 2007 MC4, 2007 MH |
| E12 | Siding Spring Survey in New South Wales, 2 in MPEC 2007-N20 -- 2002 KF4, 89830 |
| 645 | Sloan Digital Sky Survey in New Mexico, 2 in MPEC 2007-N20 -- 2006 JX25, 1999 RD32 |
| 6967 | Tim Spahr via Whipple Obs. in Arizona, 3 in MPEC 2007-N20 -- 2007 LT19, 2006 CG, 2004 JA |
| 198 | Wildberg Obs. in Germany, 3 in MPEC 2007-N20 -- 2006 XA, 2006 SC6, 2006 RO36 |
Impact Risk Monitoring on 7 July '07
At last check (NEODyS and JPL at 2357 UTC) there was no risk monitoring news to report yet today.
Chronology on 7 July '07
Times are UTC for when the items were noted by Major News.
| 1829 | Added link to news story, "The Adventures of ASTRO and NextSat" Added link to news story, "NASA Postpones Asteroid Probe's Launch to July 15" Added link to news story, "Mysterious space rock recovered in Woburn determined to be radioactive" |
| 1607 | Added news report, "Dawn launch delayed again" Added link to news story, "The Sun's Crowded Delivery Room" |
| 1423 | Grabbed MPEC 2007-N20 - Daily Orbit Update - see above |
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