Torino uses data from NASA’s Near-Earth Object program to monitor asteroids and comets with near Earth orbits. Our planet is constantly encountering asteroids and comets as it travels along its orbit, the vast majority of these objects are small and easily burn up in our atmosphere. There are however many larger objects roaming within our solar system, most of them known, but some still undiscovered, its these objects which if left unmonitored could prove to be potentially hazardous to life on Earth.
Torino presents the latest NASA findings, calculating the real world sizes of Near-Earth Objects from their absolute magnitude and presenting this visually in comparison to familiar world objects. Maxima results are also shown for the largest asteroid or comet along with other Near-Earth Objects that have the soonest, closest and fastest Earth approaches. By highlighting these objects users can quickly focus on significant results in isolation from the full catalogue. Torino presents a wealth of data in a simple and elegant way whilst providing an interesting and educational look at exactly what’s currently floating around above our heads in space
Torino is powered by data sourced from NASA’s Near-Earth Object program office based at The Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, California.