This fall, an asteroid will be pulled into Earth’s gravity as a temporary “mini-moon.”
While it and others are — thankfully — floating peacefully in space for now, asteroids pack a punch when it comes to providing valuable information about the universe: They are remnants of the formation of our solar system, giving us a look into what took place billions of years ago.
But these cosmic relics are also key players in our future and capable of doing serious damage. The millions of asteroids in our solar system span a wide range of sizes, with some as big as a house and others as wide as the Eiffel Tower is tall. Scientists are working diligently to keep an eye on these space rocks because the more we know about them, the better prepared we will be if one charts a collision course for Earth. Test your own asteroid knowledge with this quiz!
Question 1 of 7
What is the main component of most asteroids?
Question 2 of 7
How were asteroids created?
Question 3 of 7
What is the asteroid belt?
Question 4 of 7
How wide is the largest object in the main asteroid belt?
Question 5 of 7
Which of these asteroid-Earth collisions took place most recently?
Question 6 of 7
Which of these is not a real asteroid name?
Question 7 of 7
Should we be worried about a life-threatening asteroid hitting Earth soon?
You need to answer every question to see your result. You’re missing questions 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7.
About this story
Illustrations by Jungmin Ryu. Art direction by Emily Sabens. Design editing by Christian Font. Story editing by Kainaz Amaria and Lynh Bui. Copy editing by Mike Cirelli.