Surface regeneration quicker on asteroids than Earth, says NASA

tech.hindustantimes.com:

NASA in its latest finding has revealed that some asteroids are aged early by the Sun with surface rocks fracturing in just 10,000-1,00,000 years. The research body was analysing images taken by the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft during which a weathering process that happens fast has been revealed. "Scientists from NASA's OSIRIS-REx mission learned that surface regeneration happens a lot quicker on asteroids than on Earth."

NASA has 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.

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 Geoscience. “We were surprised to learn that the aging and weathering process on asteroids happens so quickly, geologically speaking,” as quoted by NASA.

The surface on Earth can change suddenly due to landslides, volcanoes, and earthquakes. But, usually changes are gradual. While, water, wind, and temperature changes slowly break down rock layers, creating new surfaces over millions of years.

NASA informed, "Rapid temperature changes on Bennu create internal stress that fractures and breaks down rocks, similar to how a cold glass breaks under hot water. The Sun rises every 4.3 hours on Bennu. At the equator, daytime highs can reach almost 260 F (about 127 C), and nighttime lows