Newly discovered evidence involving asteroids and meteorites may provide us with a better understanding of where they come from and how they helped shape Earth.
About 85 percent of 200,000 asteroids in the inner asteroid belt — Earth’s main source of meteorites — originate from about six small planets broken up by collisions, said UF emeritus professor of astronomy Stanley Dermott. The findings were published Monday in Nature Astronomy.
“This approach revealed a new aspect of the asteroid belt that people have not realized before,” Dermott said. “It’s always wonderful to find something that nobody else has seen.”
Dermott said the study was conducted by collecting 20 years worth of data from a NASA-based file. The data catalogued characteristics of the asteroids used in the study.
Dermott and the researchers in his team used statistical analysis to determine whether big and little asteroids have different orbits.
The results of the study showed the size of the asteroid determines the type of orbit it has, Dermott said. The researchers sought to find out why meteorites are different and where they came from and how asteroids are formed.
Professor and chairman of the UF Department of Astronomy Charles Telasco said he thought this was an outstanding study.
Telasco said asteroids have always been thought to be bits and pieces of the solar system that never went on to form planets. He explained how the study showed that this isn’t the case at all and reveals that there simply weren’t many remnants.
“We’re trying to understand how planets form in our and other solar systems,” Telasco said. “(This study) tells us it’s a much more efficient process than we thought before.”
Dermott believes the findings of the study will help us better comprehend the evolutionary history of asteroids and their formations. He also hopes the evidence will help us to understand how planets were formed.
Dermott plans to continue studying asteroids and meteorites to further understand planetary orbits and how they can change.
“I think it’s a very big step that we’ve narrowed down the source of meteorites to a few known objects now,” Dermott said.
Follow Dana Cassidy on Twitter @danacassidy_ and contact her at dcassidy@alligator.org.
