Eddie Irizarry of the Sociedad de Astronomía del Caribe (Astronomical Society of the Caribbean) has been a NASA Solar System Ambassador since 2004. He loves public outreach and has published multiple astronomy articles for EarthSky, as well as for newspapers in Puerto Rico. He has also offered dozens of conferences related to asteroids and comets at the Arecibo Observatory.
Asteroid 33012EddieIrizarry, a 7.8 km space rock, has been named in his honor.
On March 21, when asteroid 2001 FO32 sweeps past Earth, it’ll be moving at such a fast pace that observers using telescopes might be able to detect its motion – its drift in front of the stars – in real time.
Most Unidentified Flying Objects aren’t actually unidentified. Here’s a list of phenomena, either natural or human-made, that people often mistake for UFOs.
A mysterious object discovered in September is currently a new mini-moon for Earth. NASA confirmed on Tuesday, December 2, that the object is a lost-and-found 60s-era rocket from the Surveyor 2 moon mission, launched from Earth more than 50 years ago.
Asteroid 2000 WO107 passed Earth safely on November 29, at 11 times the moon’s distance. Astronomers at Goldstone bounced radar signals from its surface and discovered it’s 2 asteroids that touched, and stuck.
The asteroid – 2020 VT4 – is estimated to be between 16 and 36 feet (5-11 meters). It skimmed the top of our atmosphere on Friday, November 13, 2020. Astronomers spotted it one day later.
Discovered last June, Comet C/2020 M3 (Atlas) is closest to Earth – millions of miles away – on Saturday, November 14, 2020. It’s in an easy-to-find location, if you have a dark sky. Charts and photos here.
Astronomers in Hawaii have detected the Yarkovsky effect – a minuscule push imparted by sunlight – for asteroid Apophis. The effect is particularly important for Apophis, because it relates to the possibility of an Earth impact in 2068.
Watch online today as asteroid 2020 SW swoops in for its closest approach to Earth on Thursday. The asteroid will pass just 7% of the moon’s distance. Charts here for telescope users. How to watch online.
The orbit of asteroid 2011 ES4 is still not entirely known. Our knowledge of it might improve sometime today – or early tomorrow – if it is “recovered” by astronomers. It’s expected to pass within the moon’s orbit, possibly as close as 0.19 lunar distances.