NASA's Latest Asteroid Discovery: Can You Keep Up?
Published Jul 6, 2026 · Updated Jul 29, 2026 · Editorial Team
Test your knowledge about NASA's recent asteroid find, its characteristics, and what it means for planetary science.
❓ 10 Questions
⏱️ 5 Minutes
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Question 1 of 100 correct
⏱️ 05:00
QUESTION 1
In a provisional asteroid designation such as '2023 BU', what does the first letter after the year indicate?
All Questions in This Quiz
Here is every question waiting for you in this 10-question Science & Tech quiz. Play it in the interactive player above to lock in your answers, see your score and read the explanations.
In a provisional asteroid designation such as '2023 BU', what does the first letter after the year indicate?
- A. The half-month of the year in which it was discovered
- B. The observatory that discovered it
- C. The asteroid's size class
- D. The orbital family it belongs to
Which NASA space telescope surveyed near-Earth objects at infrared wavelengths until its mission ended in 2024?
- A. NEOWISE
- B. Kepler
- C. TESS
- D. Spitzer
Roughly what asteroid diameter is associated with city-scale devastation on impact, but not global consequences?
- A. About 1 metre
- B. About 150 metres
- C. About 10 kilometres
- D. About 100 kilometres
How is one astronomical unit (AU) defined?
- A. The mean Earth-Sun distance, about 150 million kilometres
- B. The Earth-Moon distance, about 384,000 kilometres
- C. The distance light travels in one year
- D. The radius of the Sun
A near-Earth asteroid whose orbit crosses Earth's and whose semi-major axis is greater than 1 AU belongs to which group?
- A. Amor
- B. Apollo
- C. Aten
- D. Main belt
Which observing technique gives the most precise range and velocity measurements for refining a near-Earth asteroid's orbit?
- A. Planetary radar, such as the Goldstone antenna
- B. Optical spectroscopy
- C. Wide-field visible photometry
- D. Radio interferometry of background quasars
Which of the following is NOT a reason NASA studies near-Earth asteroids?
- A. Assessing impact hazard
- B. Understanding how the solar system formed
- C. Searching for living organisms on their surfaces
- D. Evaluating their potential as resources
Dark, low-albedo C-type asteroids such as Bennu are linked to which class of meteorite?
- A. Carbonaceous chondrites
- B. Iron meteorites
- C. Stony-iron meteorites
- D. Basaltic achondrites
What planetary-defence technique did NASA's DART mission successfully demonstrate in 2022?
- A. Kinetic impact to change an asteroid's orbit
- B. Nuclear standoff deflection
- C. A gravity tractor towing the asteroid
- D. Altering the surface albedo to harness sunlight pressure
Which scale does NASA's Planetary Defense Coordination Office use to communicate asteroid impact hazard to the public?
- A. Torino Scale
- B. Richter Scale
- C. Saffir-Simpson Scale
- D. Fujita Scale
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