Findings from the NEAR mission, documented in a special section of the Sept. 22 issue of the journal "Science", confirm that asteroid 433 Eros is a consolidated, primitive sample from the solar system's beginnings.

"We can now say that Eros is an undifferentiated asteroid with homogeneous structure, that never separated into a distinct crust, mantle and core," says NEAR Project Scientist Dr. Andrew Cheng. "We have definitive mass and density measurements plus spectacular ../../../images and movies showing ridges, pits, troughs and grooves that provide fascinating clues about its history."

NEAR is the first in-depth study of an asteroid. Now more than halfway through a yearlong orbit mission that began Feb. 14, 2000, the NEAR Shoemaker spacecraft has taken more than 103,300 ../../../images and extensive measurements of Eros' composition, structure and landforms, at distances ranging from 22 to 220 miles.

NEAR Shoemaker's multispectral imager and now-silent infrared spectrometer have returned a flood of observations revealing heavily cratered expanses next to relatively smooth areas. The asteroid's largest crater measures 3.4 miles wide and sits opposite from an even larger 6.2-mile saddle-shaped depression. Rocks and boulders created by impacts are abundant and measure up to 330 feet across. Some areas are heavily saturated with craters wider than 660 feet.

Click here to read the entire press release, including what other team members have to say about the findings and some great views of Eros from the Laser Rangefinder Team.

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