Burnin’ through the sky: Queen’s Brian May creates stereoscopic image of asteroid

By Georgina Torbet Published March 31, 2019

A set of stereoscopic images of a large boulder on asteroid Bennu’s southern hemisphere. NASA/Goddard/University of Arizona

Asteroid Bennu is full of surprises. Not only has it been spewing out plumes of particles, but it also turns out to be much less smooth on its surface than expected, with large boulders densely packed on the rough surface.

Now one particularly large boulder has been imaged: a massive 170-foot long (52 meter) boulder sitting on the southern hemisphere of the asteroid. NASA has released this stereoscopic image of the boulder, consisting of a pair of images taken from slightly different viewpoints. This enables viewers to see the illusion of depth in the image.

Recommended Videos

If you cross your eyes and relax your vision while looking at the image, you should be able to see the image as if it is in 3D. Tilting your head to the side can help the image come into focus. Or alternatively, if you have access to a stereoscope you can see a version of the image pair optimized for stereoscope viewing here.

And as well as its scientific importance and public interest, there’s another reason this image pair is noteworthy: It was created by Queen guitarist Brian May, along with his colleague Claudia Manzoni. May studied mathematics and physics and started a Ph.D. in astronomy at Imperial College London, but he put his physics career on hold to join the band in 1968.

Decades later, after a hugely successful career as a rock star, he returned to Imperial to complete his Ph.D. in 2007. At the time, he described it to BBC News as “the longest gap year ever” and said “[i]t was a tough decision back then to leave my studies for music.”

Since completing his Ph.D., May has been working on astronomy projects like the analysis of the Bennu data. “I’m proud to have been adopted as a collaborator on the OSIRIS-REx team, along with my colleague Claudia Manzoni,” he said on Instagram. “Our passion is producing stereoscopic (3-D) images from the astounding data that the OSIRIS-REx mission has been collecting. Special thanks to mission PI, Prof. Dante Loretta, for making this possible.”

In a final charming tidbit, according to May the boulder on the surface of Bennu has been christened BenBen.

Topics

Georgina Torbet

Space Writer

Georgina has been the space writer at Digital Trends space writer for six years, covering human space exploration, planetary…

Space

NASA preps touchdown on an asteroid 207 million miles away

This artist’s concept shows NASA’s OSIRIS-REx spacecraft descending towards asteroid Bennu to collect a sample of the asteroid’s surface.

OSIRIS-REx TAG Trailer

NASA is preparing to pull off a daring heist: Next month the robotic spacecraft OSIRIS-REx will touch down on the surface of asteroid Bennu and collect a sample, aiming to precisely touch this tiny asteroid just 260 meters wide and which is currently around 207 million miles away from Earth.

Space

NASA is almost ready to touch down on asteroid Bennu and grab a sample

This artist's rendering shows the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft collecting a sample from the asteroid Bennu using a mechanical arm to touch the asteroid's surface.

OSIRIS-REx Cruises Over Site Nightingale During Final Dress Rehearsal

NASA's OSIRIS-REx spacecraft has been investigating asteroid Bennu since it arrived there in 2018, sharing pictures of the distant body. But the craft didn't just travel there to snap photos -- it will also touch down onto the surface of the asteroid and take a sample to be returned to Earth.

Emerging Tech

NASA’s OSIRIS-REx spacecraft to perform an asteroid sampling rehearsal

This artist’s concept shows the trajectory and configuration of NASA’s OSIRIS-REx spacecraft during Checkpoint rehearsal, which is the first time the mission will practice the initial steps for collecting a sample from asteroid Bennu.

This summer, the OSIRIS-REx spacecraft will attempt to touch down onto the surface of asteroid Bennu and collect a sample to be brought back to Earth for the first time. But it's no easy task to maneuver a spacecraft so close to an asteroid, getting it close enough to grab a sample without impacting too hard and damaging the craft. Not to mention the role of microgravity created by the asteroid's mass.

So this week, NASA will perform a test run of the touchdown, called the "Checkpoint" rehearsal. This will bring OSIRIS-REx the closest it has ever come to Bennu, coming as close as within 243 feet of the asteroid.