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Barring detailed mass determinations, [4] the mass can be estimated from the diameter and assumed density values worked out as below. = Besides these estimations, masses can be obtained for the larger asteroids by solving for the perturbations they cause in each other's orbits, [5] or when the asteroid has an orbiting companion of known orbital radius.
The telescope can then look back towards Earth from the same direction as the Sun, and any asteroids closer to Earth than the telescope will then be in opposition, and much better illuminated. There is a point between the Earth and Sun where the gravities of the two bodies are perfectly in balance, called the Sun-Earth L1 Lagrange point (SEL1).
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.
Since then numerous binary asteroids and several triple asteroids have been detected. [1] The mass ratio of the two components – called the "primary" and "secondary" of a binary system – is an important characteristic. Most binary asteroids have a large mass ratio, i.e. a relatively small satellite in orbit around the main component.
A numerical model of the Solar System is a set of mathematical equations, which, when solved, give the approximate positions of the planets as a function of time. Attempts to create such a model established the more general field of celestial mechanics.
Multiple types of asteroids have been identified but the three main types would include the C-type, S-type, and M-type asteroids: C-type asteroids have a high abundance of water which is not currently of use for mining, but could be used in an exploration effort beyond the asteroid.
The actual spatial density of asteroids in these gaps does not differ significantly from the neighboring regions. [5] The main gaps occur at the 3:1, 5:2, 7:3, and 2:1 mean-motion resonances with Jupiter. An asteroid in the 3:1 Kirkwood gap would orbit the Sun three times for each Jovian orbit, for instance.
Mass and volume allow the derivation of the bulk density, whose uncertainty is usually dominated by the errors made on the volume estimate. The internal porosity of asteroids can be inferred by comparing their bulk density with that of their assumed meteorite analogues, dark asteroids seem to be more porous (>40%) than bright ones.