NASA FINDS CLUES TO EARLY SOLAR SYSTEM AND LIFE\u2019S ORIGINS IN PRISTINE 2024 METEORITE DISCOVERED IN NEW JERSEY<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n For nearly three decades, astronomers<\/a> tracked 1998 SH2 as a routine asteroid wandering through space. But during its close pass to Earth in August 2025, the object missed its predicted location, suggesting to scientists that its true identity could be a comet<\/a>.<\/p>\n Artist\u2019s concept of a near-Earth space rock.<\/p>\n (NASA\/JPL-Caltech)<\/strong><\/p>\n “After we measured the nongravitational perturbations affecting the motion of 1998 SH2 and recognized they weren\u2019t compatible with the object being an asteroid, we suspected the object could be an active comet,”\u00a0said Davide Farnocchia, a navigation engineer at NASA\u2019s Center for Near-Earth Object Studies and lead author of the study.<\/p>\n THE PERSEID METEOR SHOWER IS HERE AND SKYWATCHERS COULD SEE UP TO 100 SHOOTING STARS PER HOUR<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n In simpler terms, this means research found that gravity<\/a> from the Earth and sun<\/a> was not the only driving force acting on the object.<\/p>\n During the August 2025 close approach, scientists were able to test this hypothesis with the help of global tracking telescopes<\/a>.<\/p>\n Beautiful bright comet tail in the sky. Large comet against a backdrop of stars. Falling star, astrophotography.<\/p>\n (Nazarii Neshcherenskyi \/ Getty Images)<\/strong><\/p>\n HOW TO WATCH FOX WEATHER<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n Images captured by the telescopes\u00a0revealed a faint but visible tail, confirming their suspicions.\u00a0<\/p>\n “That\u2019s how science works \u2014 you form a hypothesis, and you set out to test it. This data is exactly what was needed to confirm our hypothesis that 1998 SH2 was a comet,” said Olivier Hainaut, an astronomer with the European Southern Observatory and coauthor of the study.<\/p>\n Following the discovery, astronomers officially reclassified the object as comet\u00a0P\/1998 SH2.<\/p>\n HOW OFTEN DO METEORITES CRASH IN THE US?<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n Additionally, scientists said the findings will aid planetary defense by allowing them to better calculate the flight paths of near-Earth objects that push themselves off course.<\/p>\n Meteorite approaching Earth, collision course. Asteroid. Possible collision with the earth’s atmosphere. 3d rendering. Elements of this image are furnished by NASA URL: https:\/\/visibleearth.nasa.gov\/collection\/1484\/blue-marble Blender app<\/p>\n (Naeblys \/ Getty Images)<\/strong><\/p>\n Because its outgassing was so faint, the object was initially suspected to be a “dark comet”\u2014a space rock that vents gas without showing a tail. However, the deep-space imaging ultimately revealed a faint tail, proving it is actually an active comet in disguise.<\/p>\n SCIENTISTS DISCOVER THE SAME SUGAR FOUND IN RASPBERRIES DEEP IN SPACE FOR THE FIRST TIME<\/strong><\/a><\/p>\n This breakthrough alerts researchers that other supposed asteroids or dark comets near Earth<\/a> could be hiding faint activity, giving astronomers a way to spot and track their erratic shifts before they pose a threat.<\/p>\n![\"\"\/](\"https:\/\/www.europesays.com\/ie\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/07\/screenshot-2026-07-23-at-11.44.23-am.png\")
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