Artist’s Impression of Asteroid 1999 KW4

The unique capabilities of the SPHERE instrument on ESO’s Very Large Telescope have enabled it to obtain the sharpest images of a double asteroid as it flew by Earth on 25 May. While this double asteroid was not itself a threatening object, scientists used the opportunity to rehearse the response to a hazardous Near-Earth Object (NEO), proving that ESO’s front-line technology could be critical in planetary defence.

This artist’s impression shows both components of the double asteroid 1999 KW4 tumbling through space during its Earth fly-by.