Asteroids can age early! NASA outs strange hidden fact

tech.hindustantimes.com:

Sun can have a huge impact on asteroids too, making them age early! NASA has just revealed the secret that some asteroids are aged early by the Sun, with surface rocks fracturing in just 10,000-1,00,000 years. A weathering process that happens fast has been revealed during the analysis of images taken by the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft. Informing about the same NASA tweeted, "Don't forget to wear sunscreen. Some asteroids are aged early by the Sun, with surface rocks fracturing in just 10,000-100,000 years. Analysis of images from our #OSIRISREx mission revealed a weathering process that happens fast, geologically speaking: https://go.nasa.gov/3osdXZ7."

Don't forget to wear sunscreen. Some asteroids are aged early by the Sun, with surface rocks fracturing in just 10,000-100,000 years. Analysis of images from our #OSIRISREx mission revealed a weathering process that happens fast, geologically speaking: https://t.co/EupmNjFsKe pic.twitter.com/gFfkIhQXgV

Recently, scientists from NASA's OSIRIS-REx mission learned that surface regeneration happens a lot quicker on asteroids than on Earth. They analyzed rock fractures on asteroid Bennu from high-resolution images taken by the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft. This information will help scientists estimate how long it takes boulders on asteroids like Bennu to break down into smaller particles, which may either eject into space or stay on the asteroid's surface, NASA informed.

Tens of thousands of years might sound pretty slow, but “we thought surface regeneration on asteroids took a few millions of years,” said Marco Delbo, senior scientist at Université Côte d'Azur, CNRS, Observatoire de la Côte d'Azur, Laboratoire Lagrange, Nice, France, and lead author of a paper published June 2022 in Nature