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Asteroid capture is an orbital insertion of an asteroid around a larger planetary body. When asteroids, small rocky bodies in space, are captured, they become natural satellites , [ 1 ] [ failed verification – see discussion ] specifically either an irregular moon if permanently captured, or a temporary satellite .
The surface of the asteroid appears completely covered in ice. As this ice layer is sublimating, it may be getting replenished by a reservoir of ice under the surface. Organic compounds were also detected on the surface. [98] [99] [97] [100] The presence of ice on 24 Themis makes the initial theory plausible. [97]
Asteroid mining is the hypothetical extraction of materials from asteroids and other minor planets, including near-Earth objects. [1] Notable asteroid mining challenges include the high cost of spaceflight, unreliable identification of asteroids which are suitable for mining, and the challenges of extracting usable material in a space environment.
The asteroid is a rare example of an "imminent impactor" -- meaning it was discovered only hours before it entered our atmosphere.
Ceres is a dwarf planet and the largest body in the asteroid belt. [19] As it is cryovolcanic, it has potential for asteroid mining of resources for colonization. Its gravitational pull is stronger than other bodies in the asteroid belt, making surface colonization a more realistic possibility. [citation needed]
A new analysis of this debris has resolved a long debate about the nature of the asteroid, showing that it was a type that originated beyond Jupiter in the outer solar system.
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The hypothesis has been put forward to explain the irregular satellite orbits of Jupiter and Saturn, for example. [20] A tell-tale sign of capture is a retrograde orbit, which can result from an object approaching the side of the planet which it is rotating towards. [4] Capture has even been proposed as the origin of Earth's Moon.