Study's findings could stop asteroids from destroying Earth

Study&#039;s findings could stop asteroids from destroying Earth

(Image credit: iStock)

last updated 8 January 2015

A new study at the University of Tennesee, Knoxville, might just save the world.

This new research could help protect the Earth from potential asteroid collisions, reports Phys.org. The scientists studied 1950 DA, an asteroid that is near Earth, and found that it rotates fast enough to be gravity-defying.

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"We found that 1950 DA is rotating faster than the breakup limit for its density," Ben Rozitis, one of the UT researchers, said in a statement. "So if just gravity were holding this rubble pile together, as is generally assumed, it would fly apart. Therefore, interparticle cohesive forces must be holding it together." Cohesive forces have previously not been noted in asteroids, though there has been speculation about their presence.

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