NASA’s Deep Space Network planetary radar captured the first full photographs of the “stadium-sized” asteroid known as 2008 OS7, according to Interesting Engineering.
This space asteroid, passing near to Earth on February 2, posed no risk of impact, orbiting at a safe distance of 1.8 million miles (2.9 million km), or 7 ½ times the distance between Earth and Moon.
Seizing the unusual opportunity, NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Southern California used the 230-foot (70-meter) Goldstone Solar System Radar antenna dish at the Deep Space Network’s Barstow station to collect precise photographs of the asteroid’s close approach.
The Catalina Sky Survey, financed by NASA, discovered the asteroid in 2008, marking the first time scientists were able to collect detailed information about it due to its close vicinity.
The acquired data enabled JPL scientists to assess the asteroid’s size, spin, shape, and surface features. Reflecting light measurements revealed a width ranging from 500 to 650 feet (150 to 200 meters), and the asteroid exhibited a relatively leisurely rotation, completing one full turn in approximately 29 ½ hours.
