Small Bodies

LPL has long been a leader in researching the small bodies of the solar system. Active research includes:

• Two world-renowned groundbased asteroid survey programs: SPACEWATCH®, directed by Dr. Robert McMillan, claims a number of firsts in hunting for small bodies, many related to being the first to use CCD-scanning routinely; and Catalina Sky Survey, under the direction of Eric Christensen, has led the world in asteroid discoveries each year since 2005. Dr. McMillan has also been part of the Near-Earth Object portion of the WISE spacecraft mission.

• NEO Surveyor, optimized for the task of finding and characterizing the impact risks posed by potentially hazardous objects.

• The first American asteroid sample-return mission. OSIRIS-REx, with Professor Dante Lauretta as the Principal Investigator, was launched in 2016, arrived at asteroid Bennu in 2018, and will being its return to Earth in 2021.

• Several groups active in meteorite research, led by professors Dante Lauretta, Tim Swindle, and Tom Zega.

• Research into the orbital evolution of the main asteroid belt and the Kuiper Belt, led by Regents Professor Renu Malhotra.

• LPL also has a long history of comet research, which continues with new and ongoing studies by Associate Professor Walter Harris and Professor Emeritus Uwe Fink.

Catalina Sky Survey

SPACEWATCH®

OSIRIS-REx

NEO Surveyor