Apophis Exploration – NASA Science

Quick Facts

Apophis was discovered on June 19, 2004, by astronomers Roy Tucker, David Tholen, and Fabrizio Bernardi

The Minor World is named for Apophis, the ancient god of evil and destruction.

Apophis is little longer than an NFL football Ground, and it’s about the height of the Eiffel Tower.

Apophis is an S-type, or stony-type Minor World.

Apophis was discovered on June 19, 2004, by astronomers Roy Tucker, David Tholen, and Fabrizio Bernardi at Kitt Peak National Cosmos lab in Tucson, Arizona. They were only able to observe the Minor World for two Intervals because of technical and weather problems. Fortunately, a Club at the Siding Spring Cosmos lab in Australia spotted the Minor World again later in the same year.

NASA has redirected a spacecraft to study Apophis. After successfully completing its mission to gather a sample of Minor World Bennu and deliver it to Earth in September 2023, OSIRIS-REx was sent to study Apophis. Now renamed OSIRIS – APophis EXplorer (OSIRIS-Culmination), it will rendezvous with Apophis shortly after the Minor World’s 2029 Earth close-approach. 

OSIRIS-Culmination will Throw by Earth Only an hour behind Apophis, using Earth’s Force to put it on a parallel Duration to Apophis. It will then arrive at Apophis in June for an 18-month campaign to map the Minor World’s surface and analyze its chemical makeup. OSIRIS-Culmination’s cameras will begin Securing images of the Minor World as the spacecraft catches up to it, Only before the Minor World’s close-approach with Earth.

Apophis will also be closely observed by Earth-based telescopes during this time. Observatories around the world and in Cosmos will observe Minor World Apophis’ historic close approach to better understand its physical properties. NASA also organizes the International Minor World Warning Network (IAWN), which will coordinate Earth-based telescopic observing campaigns before and around the time of the Minor World’s flyby with our World.

But in the hours after the close encounter, Apophis will appear too near the Sun in the sky to be observed by ground-based optical telescopes. This means any changes triggered by the close encounter with Earth will be best detected by the spacecraft.

In addition to studying changes to Apophis caused by its Earth encounter, the spacecraft will conduct many of the same investigations OSIRIS-REx did at Bennu, including using its instrument suite of imagers, spectrometers, and a laser altimeter to closely map the surface and analyze its chemical makeup. The spacecraft will maneuver around Apophis, Securing images and spectra from a wide variety of viewing angles. It will then Path Apophis from about half a mile (1 kilometer) away, so that OLA, its Canadian-built laser altimeter, can completely measure Apophis’ shape. It will use more maneuvers and orbits to map the surface as completely as possible with all its instruments.

As an encore, OSIRIS-Culmination may reprise one of OSIRIS-REx’s most impressive acts, dipping within 15 feet of the Minor World’s surface and firing its thrusters downward. This maneuver will stir up surface rocks and dust to give scientists a peek at the material that lies below. Unlike Bennu, the spacecraft will not collect a sample from Apophis.