NASA Identifies 3 Potential Asteroids to Catch With Space Lasso

NASA has narrowed the list of candidates to three space rocks for an ambitious mission to capture an asteroid and tow it to the moon, where it can be explored by astronauts.

The space agency's plan aims to bring a 23-foot-wide space rock into lunar orbit using a robotic space lasso. Once the asteroid is in a stable orbit around the moon, astronauts can visit as soon as 2021 using NASA's Orion space capsule and the giant Space Launch System mega-rocket.

NASA scientists have identified three of the best candidates from a list of 14 asteroids that could be prime contenders for this kind of mission, Paul Chodas, a senior scientist in NASA's Near-Earth Object Program Office told reporters in a teleconference Wednesday. [NASA's Asteroid Capture Mission in Pictures: How It Works] Read more...