Planetary Defense: 3D Animation of Asteroids Discovered by Vera Rubin Observatory

Planetary Defense: 3D Animation of Asteroids Discovered by Vera Rubin Observatory

This animation shows the inner Solar System populated with known asteroids in dark blue and asteroids discovered by Rubin in light teal. As the discovered objects appear, their locations are shown at the time of each object's discovery. Over the course of the 1.6 years that the animation spans, the newly discovered asteroids disperse.

A total of 12,700 asteroids discovered with Rubin are shown here during the 1.6 years of observation. The discoveries come in three bursts: 73 were discovered during the first early test observations using Rubin’s Commissioning Camera in late 2024 and released as part of Rubin’s Data Preview 1 in Summer 2025. 1514 were discovered during First Look observations in April and May 2025, and the recent 11,000+ asteroids were discovered in Rubin’s early optimization surveys in Summer 2025.

Note that the number of asteroid discoveries may decrease with time as a portion may be connected to earlier observations by the International Astronomical Union (IAU) Minor Planet Center, and hence reclassified as “recovered asteroids” and not discoveries.

Learn more about the Vera Rubin Observatory:

https://noirlab.edu/science/programs/vera-c-rubin-observatory

An Introduction to Vera Rubin:

https://rubinobservatory.org/about/vera-rubin

Credit: NSF–DOE Vera C. Rubin Observatory/NOIRLab/SLAC/AURA/R. Proctor
Star map: NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center Scientific Visualization Studio. Gaia DR2: ESA/Gaia/DPAC
Image Processing: M. Zamani (NSF NOIRLab)

Duration: 30 seconds

Release Date: April 2, 2026

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