NASA discovered long ago that asteroids are vital for the proliferation of life. These giant rocks have the power to make a planet start over, like it did with Earth 64 million years ago when the dinosaurs went extinct, creating a domino effect within species. The need to adapt or die influenced the development of the world we know, and if Earth had never been hit by asteroids during its formation billions of years ago, water would not be abundant, and life would never exist. Nowadays, we are protected by NASA, which in 2022 successfully deflected an asteroid in the Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART).
Water did not originate on Earth, it was brought here
Earth was formed over 4.6 billion years ago through a process called the solar nebula. The gravity from the sun made particles clump together, forming what’s called planetesimals – small celestial bodies, usually made from rock and ice. Our planet eventually reached its current size through a final collision with a Mars-sized object, which also resulted in the formation of the moon.
In the billions of years to come, the moon will protect Earth from being hit by asteroids, which is the reason why the natural satellite has craters. Sometimes, it couldn’t avoid some giant rocks from hitting the planet, but that’s what scientists think made Earth water-abundant. The primary belief is that water was delivered by asteroids and comets during the planet’s formation. Additionally, some water may have been released from pockets within its mantle through volcanic activity over billions of years.
NASA found asteroids with water
With these theories in mind, NASA scientists were studying two silicate-rich asteroids (Iris and Massalia) and found water on their surface using the retired Stratospheric Observatory for Infrared Astronomy (SOFIA). The studied cosmic objects have diameters of 124 miles and 84 miles, according to the paper published in the Planetary Science journal. The paper’s co-author and asteroid researcher at the Southwest Research Institute, Anicia Arredondo, stated that the new findings can explain how water was delivered to Earth.
Asteroids are formed in the same way planets are, but they never merged with other bodies to become a bigger, denser cosmic object. Although Jupiter is the largest planet, with the strongest gravitational pull, Saturn is also a significant threat in the area, and its gravity has destroyed countless small moons, asteroids, and comets. The rings surrounding the planet are mainly composed of billions of ice and rock particles, some of which are larger than mountains.
The retired NASA observatory made the discovery
SOFIA was a joint project between NASA and the German Space Agency, but it was shut down in September 2022 due to its high operational costs. SOFIA was responsible for several significant discoveries, including finding water molecules on the sunlit surface of the moon, identifying complex molecules in space, and studying celestial magnetic fields from black holes in the middle of the Milky Way. NASA estimates there are approximately 1 million asteroids in our solar system, and the presence of water in Iris and Massalia may indicate a greater resistance from molecules in the harsh environment of space, specifically not too far from the sun.
An asteroid coming to Earth doesn’t mean extinction
What is considered the process of delivering more water to the planet can also be interpreted as a massive extinction event for human life. With today’s technology, scientists are able to see what is coming towards Earth, and NASA has a protocol for planetary defense in case some cosmic giants come our way. For more information about the discovery, you can check the full study here: Anicia Arredondo et al., 2024. Detection of Molecular H2O on Nominally Anhydrous Asteroids. Planet. Sci. J., 5(37), pp.13. DOI 10.3847/PSJ/ad18b8.