Orbits of near-Earth asteroid types. Illustration of the orbits (red ellipses) of three types of near-Earth asteroids, shown relative to the orbits (b
Orbits of near-Earth asteroid types. Illustration of the orbits (red ellipses) of three types of near-Earth asteroids, shown relative to the orbits (blue rings) of Earth (blue) and Mars (red). Also shown are the asteroid belt (grey ring) and the orbits of Jupiter (yellow) and Saturn (brown). The asteroid types are (top to bottom): Amor, Apollo, Aten. Amor asteroids orbit near but outside the orbit of the Earth. The orbits of Apollo asteroids take them both beyond and within the Earth's orbit, as do the orbits of Aten asteroids, but Aten asteroids have a smaller, more constrained orbit. Asteroids are rocky bodies orbiting within the solar system. They vary in size from tens of metres across to more than a hundred kilometres across. There are thousands of asteroids in the solar system and they lie mainly between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter. Asteroids have struck Earth in the past and will do so again in the future.
Size: 2671px × 6543px
Photo credit: © TIM BROWN/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
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