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The asteroid belt is a torus -shaped region in the Solar System, centered on the Sun and roughly spanning the space between the orbits of the planets Jupiter and Mars. It contains a great many solid, irregularly shaped bodies called asteroids or minor planets.
- How Did The Asteroid Belt form?
- Belt Composition
- Asteroid Mining
- Building A Belt
- Discovery of The Asteroid Belt
- Additional Resources
- Bibliography
Early in the life of the solar system, dust and rock circling the sun were pulled together by gravity into planets. But not all of the ingredients created new worlds. A region between Mars and Jupiterbecame the asteroid belt. Occasionally people wonder whether the belt was made up of the remains of a destroyed planet, or a world that didn't quite g...
Most of the asteroids in the main belt are made of rock and stone, but a small portion of them contain iron and nickel metals. The remaining asteroids are made up of a mix of these, along with carbon-rich materials. Some of the more distant asteroids tend to contain more ices. Although they aren't large enough to maintain an atmosphere, but there i...
Asteroids have more than enough gold, plus other precious metals, to provide a few lifetimes' worth of fortunes. But there are plenty of other reasons asteroids are valuable. But how do we get these metals from these faraway asteroids? Perhaps the best way is to bring the spacerocks to Earth. Most of the metals we use in our everyday lives are buri...
The main belt lies between Mars and Jupiter, roughly two to four times the Earth-sun distance, and spans a region about 140 million miles across. Objects in the belt are divided into eight subgroups named after the main asteroids in each group. These groups are the Hungarias, Floras, Phocaea, Koronis, Eos, Themis, Cybeles and Hildas. Although Holly...
Johann Titius, an 18th-century German astronomer, noted a mathematical pattern in the layout of the planets and used it to predict the existence of one between Mars and Jupiter. Astronomers scoured the heavens in search of this missing body. In 1800, 25 astronomers formed a group known as the Celestial Police, each searching 15 degrees of the Zodia...
You can read more about asteroids and the updated current asteroid count at NASA's Solar System Exploration asteroid page. Additionally you can learn more about the formation of the main asteroid belt in this article by Cosmos Magazine.
"Asteroids". NASA Solar System Exploration (2021). "The Grand Tack". Southwest Research Institute. "Forming Terrestrial Planets". Science (2014). "UCLA Astronomers Identify Evidence Of Asteroid Belt Around Nearby Star: Findings Indicate Potential For Planet Or Asteroid Formation". University of California (2001). "Asteroids: Structure and compositi...
Feb 7, 2023 · The asteroid belt contains objects that vary wildly in size. It has 1 to 2 million asteroids more than half a mile (about a km) across. Plus, the asteroid belt contains untold millions of...
Main Asteroid Belt: The majority of known asteroids orbit within the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter, generally with not very elongated orbits. The belt is estimated to contain between 1.1 and 1.9 million asteroids larger than 1 kilometer (0.6 miles) in diameter, and millions of smaller ones.
Jun 30, 2021 · 1 min read. Picturing Our Solar System’s Asteroid Belt. NASA. Jun 30, 2021. Image Article. Today is International Asteroid Day! Asteroids, sometimes called minor planets, are rocky remnants left over from the early formation of our solar system about 4.6 billion years ago. The current known asteroid count is more than one million!
Aug 23, 2015 · The asteroids of the inner Solar System and Jupiter: The donut-shaped asteroid belt is located between the orbits of Jupiter and Mars. Credit: Wikipedia Commons. Structure: Despite common...
Jul 13, 2021 · Main Asteroid Belt: The majority of known asteroids orbit within the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter, generally with not very elongated orbits. The belt is estimated to contain between 1.1 and 1.9 million asteroids larger than 1 kilometer (0.6 miles) in diameter, and millions of smaller ones.
