Two Indian students dubbed as 'Surat Girls' discovered the existence of an asteroid, now named HLV2514 by NASA, that is set to pass by earth in the future.
Hailed both from the province of Surat, Gujarat, the two students, Radhika Lakhani Prafulbhai and Vaidehi Vekariya Sanjaybhai discovered the near-earth object (NEO) while involved in an international campaign called the 'All India Asteroid Search Campaign 2020'. It is a science programme hosted for two months by the Hardin Simmons University in Texas and SPACE India in collaboration with International Astronomical Search Collaboration (IASC). It was a programme participated by their school PP Savani Chaitanya Vidya Sankul, a CBSE school.
According to News18, the news about NASA confirming the rare asteroid discovery was announced by SPACE India's social media division on July 24, 2020, along with the space agency's confirmation letter.
Asteroid Discovery Alert
According to a discovery alert posted by the body, the NEO is currently close to planet mars and will soon become an earth-crossing asteroid over time (~10^6 years).
DISCOVERY ALERT! We are proud to announce that two Girls from Surat with the help of SPACE-All India Asteroid Search... Posted by SPACE India on Friday, July 24, 2020
According to the students, they discovered the asteroid using an advanced telescoped called the Pan Starrs telescope in Hawaii that is capable to see indistinct objects out in the outer space.
For more interesting asteroid stories, keep your tabs on Tech Times!
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