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The first asteroid ever discovered - Carrie Nugent

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TEDEd Animation

Let’s Begin…

Over the course of history, we’ve discovered hundreds of thousands of asteroids. But how do astronomers discover these bits of rock and metal? How many have they found? And how do they tell asteroids apart? Carrie Nugent shares the story of the very first asteroid ever discovered and explains how asteroid hunters search for these celestial bodies.

Looking through a telescope, you can distinguish between asteroids and stars:

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Meet The Creators

  • Educator Carrie Nugent
  • Director Biljana Labović
  • Animator Reza Riahi
  • Designer Reza Riahi
  • Composer Nicolas Martigne
  • Sound Designer Nicolas Martigne
  • Photographer NASA/JPL-Caltech/UCLA/MPS/DLR/IDA
  • Associate Producer Jessica Ruby
  • Content Producer Gerta Xhelo
  • Editorial Producer Alex Rosenthal
  • Narrator Susan Zimmerman

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