Armada to Apophis—scientists recycle old ideas for rare asteroid encounter

[Rick]

Armada to Apophis—scientists recycle old ideas for rare asteroid encounter

For nearly 20 years, scientists have known an asteroid named Apophis will pass unusually close to Earth on Friday, April 13, 2029. But most officials at the world's space agencies stopped paying much attention when updated measurements ruled out the chance Apophis will impact Earth anytime soon.

Now, Apophis is again on the agenda, but this time as a science opportunity, not as a threat. The problem is there's not much time to design, build and launch a spacecraft to get into position near Apophis in less than five years. The good news is there are designs, and in some cases, existing spacecraft, that governments can repurpose for missions to Apophis, a rocky asteroid about the size of three football fields.

More: https://arstechnica.com/space/2024/07/armada-to-apophis-scientists-recycle-old-ideas-for-rare-asteroid-encounter/