Asteroid belt

[bdewoody]

What is the average distance between the asteroids in the asteroid belt? When we send probes to Jupiter and beyond do they go through the belt or around it.

Have collisions between the asteroids ever been observed as seen in sci-fi movies?

 

[thnkrx]

What is the average distance between the asteroids in the asteroid belt?

I don't know the exact 'average distance', but you should keep in mind that the 'ring' taken up by the asteriod belt is larger (more volume) than everything inside the orbit of Mars. Wild guess on my part: a quarter au? Now, at the trojan points for jupiter, I believe the density of the asteriods to be much greater; the average seperation there might be on the order of a few thousand miles.

When we send probes to Jupiter and beyond do they go through the belt or around it.

Through it. If I remember right, two or three of the more recent probes did so called 'close flyby's' of an asteriod or two (though still tens of thousands of miles distant even at closest approach, and just managing that took a bit of tweaking).

Have collisions between the asteroids ever been observed as seen in sci-fi movies?

Not that I recollect...but I could be wrong here. It would be a rare event in any case.

 

[MeteorWayne]

It would be hard to judge the average distance, but it's a lot. That might change as WISE gets a better look at the occupants.

Any probes going to the planets go right through the Main Asteroid Belt, as it's the only way to get to the planets, since 98% of the stuff in the solar system is in that same plane.

No collisions have ever been observed.

 

[3488]

Thought I would chuck this in here. :mrgreen:

The below are all Main Belt asteroids.

The Jupiter bound Galileo spacecraft encountered two asteroids.

951 Gaspra (19 KM x 12 KM x 11 KM) at a distance of 1,600 KM (but over the night side, the best images were from 5,300 KM).

243 Ida (25 KM x 52 KM) at a distance of 1,600 KM.

NEAR / Shoemaker whilst on route to Amor Asteroid 433 Eros (one that comes closer to the Sun than Mars but not as close as Earth), encountered 253 Mathilde (24 KM x 57 KM).

Rosetta Spacecraft encountered 2867 Steins (5.2 KM x 2.7 KM) from 800 KM.

Andrew Brown.