How Sunlight Pushes Asteroids Rotating asteroids have a tough time sticking to their orbits. Their surfaces heat up during the day and cool down at night, giving off radiation that can act as a sort of mini-thruster. This force, called the Yarkovsky effect, can cause rotating asteroids to drift widely over time, making it hard for scientists to predict their long-term risk to Earth. Learn more here: http://1.usa.gov/1SgyCeT | NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center

54K views · 1K reactions | We’ve got your back, Earth. NASA enters its third decade of planetary defense. See how we track and study asteroids: https://go.nasa.gov/2NDCru1 | NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory | Facebook