Asteroids are caught playing catch with debris like slow-moving cosmic snowballs

Space
Asteroids are caught playing catch with debris like slow-moving cosmic snowballs

Recent space missions have observed active asteroids ejecting and recapturing their own rocky debris, creating a gentle cycle of cosmic catch that challenges our understanding of how small celestial bodies behave.

NASA spacecraft visiting asteroids like Bennu and Ryugu have captured breathtaking footage of these rocky bodies spitting out pebbles into space. These particles often travel so slowly that the asteroid's weak gravity pulls them back down, causing them to hop across the surface like low-motion snowballs.

There's more to this story — open the app to keep reading.

Continue Reading in App
1 more paragraphs · plus a 2-question quiz
Open in App

Get the full experience

Download Facts A Day