NASA

Prof. Sara Seager, postdoctoral fellow Iaroslav Iakubivskyi and Claire Isabel Webb PhD '20 have designed Phainoterra, an imaginary planet “with a habitable sulfuric acid-based biochemistry” using “extensive scientific research and cross-checking against known physical precepts,” reports Leslie Katz for Forbes. The creation of Phainoterra is a part of “Proxima Kosmos, a new project that unites scientists, including one from NASA, with designers and sci-fi writers to create a speculative solar system consistent with the laws of astronomy and physics.” 

Boston Globe reporter Hiawatha Bray spotlights how MIT researchers developed a thumb-sized rover and a depth-mapping camera, technologies that will be used on a mission to the south pole of the Moon. The mini rover, dubbed AstroAnt, could one day be used to “patrol the exteriors of lunar probes, satellites, or space stations. Some might use cameras to spot meteorite damage, while others could apply sealants to prevent air or fuel leaks.”

Prof. Richard Binzel speaks with The Naked Scientists host Chris Smith about near-earth objects (NEOs). “It’s the appearance that will distinguish what we call an asteroid and what we call a comet,” explains Binzel. “If it looks like a tiny little star, or star-like, it's an asteroid. But if it's fuzzy, we call it a comet. But generally speaking, they have two different origins. Asteroids tend to come in from the asteroid belt, which is between Mars and Jupiter. And comets tend to come from way out in the far reaches of our Solar System.”

Prof. Richard Binzel speaks with Salon reporter Matthew Rosza about his work creating the Torino Impact Hazard Scale, which measures the threat posed by space rocks. Previous measurements expressed “themselves in different ways, and that could be very confusing to the public,” says Binzel. “This was the motivation for finding a common communication system, a common scale that we could put into context any newly discovered object.” 

USA Today reporter Eric Lagatta spotlights how MIT engineers and scientists are sending three payloads into space, on a course set for the Moon’s south polar region. The payload includes a mini, thumb-sized rover dubbed “AstroAnt” that the MIT researchers designed to help monitor the larger space vehicle. “AstroAnt is designed to inspect external surfaces of spacecraft, and will also collect thermal data and measurements while the rover explores,” writes Lagatta. 

Prof. Richard Binzel discusses how the risk posed by asteroid 2024 YR4 has now been significantly reduced based off new information gathered on the asteroid’s trajectory, reports Ashley Strickland for CNN. The rapid de-escalation in risk is thanks to the “unsung, meticulous work by astronomers” who conducted a steady stream of follow-up observations of the space rock using telescopes across the globe,” Binzel explains. “I’m pleasantly surprised that we could reduce the probability numbers so quickly.” 

Prof. Richard Binzel speaks with Bloomberg reporter F.D. Flam about tracking asteroid 2024 YR4. “It might seem like things are getting more dangerous or more scary, but what's really happening is we're making ourselves more and more secure,” says Binzel. 

Researchers at MIT have developed a new chip-based system capable of improving “how terahertz (THz) waves pass through silicon chips,” reports Rupendra Brahambhatt for Interesting Engineering. The researchers “applied a principle called matching, which involves reducing the difference between silicon (dielectric constant is 11) and air (dielectric constant is 1) so that more waves can travel through,” writes Brahambhatt. 

Prof. Richard Binzel speaks with NBC News reporter Denise Chow about the Torino scale, a method he developed for categorizing the risks posed by near-Earth objects. “The idea was to be as transparent as possible about what astronomers know,” says Binzel of the idea behind the scale.

Prof. Richard Binzel, creator of the Torino scale that NASA uses to measure the threat of incoming objects, speaks with Brandon Truitt of CBS Boston about his quest to track 2024 YR4, an asteroid that astronomers are closely monitoring to see how close it might come to Earth in 2032. “As we get more and more measurements, we keep tracking the asteroid, that uncertainty window, that broad range of where it could go it's going to shrink and shrink," says Binzel. "Until the Earth falls outside of that pathway, we're going to see these probabilities bounce around."

Prof. Richard Binzel speaks with CNN reporter Ashley Strickland about the trajectory of asteroid 2024 YR4. “YR4 presents a challenge because it is small and headed away. Telescopes on the ground can track it for a few more months. Then we’ll call (the James Webb Space Telescope) into service to track it even further, if needed,” says Binzel. “While certainty for 2024 YR4 missing the Earth is the outcome we expect, it’s not up to us. It’s for nature to decided. In fact, nature already has settled the question. We just don’t know that answer yet. That’s why our tracking efforts continue.”

Prof. Richard Binzel, Prof. Julien de Wit, and Research Scientist Artem Burdanov speak with NBC 10 Boston reporter Matt Fortin about their new asteroid-detecting method that will be used to track the newly discovered asteroid 2024 YR4 and help protect Earth. “By refining and applying their technique, my colleagues [de Wit and Burdanov] have basically turned the JWST into the most capable asteroid-tracking system in history,” explains Binzel.

In an interview with NBC News reporter Kathy Park, Prof. Richard Binzel, Prof. Julien de Wit, and Research Scientist Artem Burdanov provide insight into astronomer's efforts to learn more about asteroid 2024 YR4. “This is an object that merits tracking by astronomers, merits our attention and that’s simply what we are doing,” says Binzel. 

Profs. Richard Binzel, Julien de Wit and Research Scientist Artem Burdanov speak with Boston Globe reporter Sarah Mesdjian about asteroid 2024 YR4 and their work developing a new method to “find and track far-away asteroids that were previously undetectable by using technology they compared to long-exposure images.” Says Binzel: “With improving technology, we are going to be aware of more and more of these objects.” He adds: “It’s a really important learning process what we’re doing right now. So when we find more and more of them, we know how to quickly process them and assess which of them are really worth looking further into.”

Research Scientist Artem Burdanov speaks with Boston.com reporter Molly Farrar about asteroid 2024 YR4. Burdanov and his colleagues recently developed a new detection method that could be used to track potential asteroid impactors and help protect our planet. “We need to observe it more, and then we can make an informed decision,” says Burdanov, “but it’s good that we have telescopes and scientists who can do this type of work and inform the public about the threat.”