Latest news with #Flyeye
Al Etihad
10-06-2025
- Science
- Al Etihad
European Space Agency's new asteroid hunter opens its eye to sky
10 June 2025 12:03 SICILY (ALETIHAD) The European Space Agency's (ESA) newest planetary defender has opened its 'eye' to the cosmos for the first time. The Flyeye telescope's 'first light' marks the beginning of a new chapter in how to scan the skies for new near-Earth asteroids and by an insect's compound eye, ESA and OHB Italia designed Flyeye to capture a region of the sky more than 200 times as large as the full Moon in a single exposure – much larger than a conventional will use this wide field of view to automatically survey the sky each night independent from human operation and identify new asteroids that could pose a hazard to Earth. 'In the future, a network of up to four Flyeye telescopes spread across the northern and southern hemispheres will work together to further improve the speed and completeness these automatic sky surveys and to reduce the dependence on good weather at any individual site,' said ESA's Ernesto Doelling, Flyeye Project Manager.'The earlier we spot potentially hazardous asteroids, the more time we have to assess them and, if necessary, prepare a response,' said Richard Moissl, Head of ESA's Planetary Defence Office. 'ESA's Flyeye telescopes will be an early-warning system, and their discoveries will be shared with the global planetary defence community.'ESA's Near-Earth Object Coordination Centre (NEOCC) will verify any potential new asteroid detections made by the Flyeye telescopes and submit the findings to the Minor Planet Centre, Earth's hub for asteroid observational data. Astronomers, including experts from the NEOCC, will then carry out follow-up observations to further assess the hazard that the object may Aceti, Managing Director at OHB Italia, explained, 'The unique optical design of the Flyeye telescope is optimised for conducting large sky surveys while maintaining high image quality throughout the wide field of view."He added that the telescope is equipped with a one-metre primary mirror, which efficiently captures incoming light. This light is then divided into 16 separate channels, each equipped with a camera capable of detecting very faint objects. This enables simultaneous high-sensitivity observations over a large region of the sky. During operations, Flyeye's observation schedule will be optimised to consider factors such as Moon brightness and the work of other survey telescopes such as the NASA-funded ATLAS telescopes, the Zwicky Transient Facility and the upcoming Vera Rubin Telescope.
Yahoo
05-06-2025
- General
- Yahoo
Bug-eyed telescope ready to find Earth-smashing asteroids
It's only a matter of time before a catastrophically sized asteroid barrels towards Earth again. Until very recently in human history, there was no way of knowing if one was hurtling towards us, much less do anything to alter its path. Now, international space agencies and disaster preparedness experts have powerful tools to keep watch over the skies—and the newest aide just opened its bug-inspired compound 'eye.' According to the European Space Agency, the Flyeye-1 telescope recently completed its 'first light' test at the Italian Space Agency's Space Geodesy Center, located about 160 miles east of Naples. Soon, it and as many as three other similar installations around the world will work in tandem to provide comprehensive, automated surveys of space every night to scan for cosmic threats. 'The earlier we spot potentially hazardous asteroids, the more time we have to assess them and, if necessary, prepare a response,' explains Richard Moissl, Head of ESA's Planetary Defence Office. 'ESA's Flyeye telescopes will be an early-warning system, and their discoveries will be shared with the global planetary defence community.' Similar to an insect's vision (hence its name), Flyeye captures incoming light through its 3.3-foot-wide primary mirror. That light is divided into 16 independent channels, all equipped with their own secondary lens and detector cameras designed to flag extremely faint objects. Flyeye's automated observation schedule is designed to factor in variables such as lunar brightness along with other survey telescopes like NASA's ATLAS, the Zwicky Transient Facility, and the forthcoming Vera Rubin Telescope. So what happens if Flyeye spies a suspicious space rock out there in deep space? The plan is for experts at ESA's Near-Earth Object Coordination Center (NEOCC) to review and verify any potential concerns. If the situation warrants further investigation, the NEOCC will then forward their report to the Minor Planet Center, a global hub for asteroid data. Subsequent research will lead to international contingency planning, which could involve any number of solutions, such as smacking the asteroid off course with a targeted spacecraft launch. Before that can happen, Flyeye needed to demonstrate its up to the task. For its first light test, Flyeye focused on multiple known asteroids, including 2025 KQ. Astronomers discovered the space rock only two days earlier, offering direct proof that the telescope is already capable of rapid follow-up observations. 'These images of the sky above the ancient stone hills of Matera, Italy, are more than just a test—they are proof that Flyeye is ready to begin its mission,' ESA said in its announcement. Flyeye-1 is now on its way for installation on Monte Mulfara in Sicily. If all goes according to plan, the telescope's first sibling will be up and running sometime in 2028.
Al Arabiya
25-02-2025
- Science
- Al Arabiya
Chance huge asteroid will hit Earth down to 0.001 percent
The chance that a football field-sized asteroid capable of destroying a city will strike Earth in 2032 has fallen to 0.001 percent, the European Space Agency said on Tuesday. A week ago, the asteroid set a new record for having the highest probability of hitting Earth -- 3.1 percent according to NASA and 2.8 percent according to the ESA. The planetary defense community has been scanning the skies. However, as had been widely expected, fresh observations from telescopes around the world narrowed the area of uncertainty where the asteroid could strike, increasingly ruling out the odds of a direct hit. The ESA said the chance was now down to 0.001 percent, adding that the threat level on the Torino Impact Hazard Scale was now at zero -- after hitting level three out of a possible 10 last week. The asteroid, called 2024 YR4, was discovered in December. It is estimated to be 40-90 meters (130 to 300 feet) wide, which means it has the potential to devastate a city. The impact date would have been December 22, 2032 -- but it is now extremely likely the asteroid will simply zoom past Earth. Despite the plummeting risk, the James Webb Space Telescope will still observe the asteroid in the coming months, the ESA said. Scientists had emphasized that even if the asteroid had been heading our way, Earth is now capable of fighting back. In the first test of our planetary defenses, NASA's DART mission successfully altered a harmless asteroid's trajectory in 2022 by smashing a spacecraft into it. Richard Moissl, head of the ESA's planetary defense office, told AFP that observing the asteroid -- then ruling out a direct hit -- was 'a very exciting and educational exercise.' Praising the early detection of the asteroid, he emphasized that 'there is still ample room for improvement.' Several new telescopes, such as the Vera Rubin and Flyeye, which are near becoming operational will enable astronomers to spot asteroids more quickly, Moissl said. So will Europe's planned early warning mission NEOMIR, he added. The last time an asteroid bigger than 30 meters wide posed such a significant risk was Apophis in 2004, when it briefly had a 2.7 percent chance of striking EartFh in 2029 -- a possibility also ruled out through additional observations.
Yahoo
25-02-2025
- Science
- Yahoo
Chance huge asteroid will hit Earth down to 0.001 percent
The chance that a football field-sized asteroid capable of destroying a city will strike Earth in 2032 has fallen to 0.001 percent, the European Space Agency said on Tuesday. A week ago, the asteroid set a new record for having the highest probability of hitting Earth -- 3.1 percent according to NASA and 2.8 percent according to the ESA. The planetary defence community has been scanning the skies. However, as had been widely expected, fresh observations from telescopes around the world narrowed the area of uncertainty where the asteroid could strike, increasingly ruling out the odds of a direct hit. The ESA said the chance was now down to 0.001 percent, adding that the threat level on the Torino Impact Hazard Scale was now at zero -- after hitting level three out of a possible 10 last week. The asteroid, called 2024 YR4, was discovered in December. It is estimated to be 40-90 metres (130 to 300 feet) wide, which means it has the potential to devastate a city. The impact date would have been December 22, 2032 -- but it is now extremely likely the asteroid will simply zoom past Earth. Despite the plummeting risk, the James Webb Space Telescope will still observe the asteroid in the coming months, the ESA said. Scientists had emphasised that even if the asteroid had been heading our way, Earth is now capable of fighting back. In the first test of our planetary defences, NASA's DART mission successfully altered a harmless asteroid's trajectory in 2022 by smashing a spacecraft into it. Richard Moissl, head of the ESA's planetary defence office, told AFP that observing the asteroid -- then ruling out a direct hit -- was "a very exciting and educational exercise". Praising the early detection of the asteroid, he emphasised that "there is still ample room for improvement". Several new telescopes, such as the Vera Rubin and Flyeye, which are near becoming operational will enable astronomers to spot asteroids more quickly, Moissl said. So will Europe's planned early warning mission NEOMIR, he added. The last time an asteroid bigger than 30 metres wide posed such a significant risk was Apophis in 2004, when it briefly had a 2.7 percent chance of striking Earth in 2029 -- a possibility also ruled out through additional observations. dl/tw
