Astronomers Discover Hundreds of Unknown Asteroids Orbiting Venus

Daily Galaxy ^ | June 25, 2025 | Lydia Amazouz

[Red Badger]

Astronomers are making a surprising breakthrough in the study of Venus, as new simulations suggest there may be a hidden family of asteroids quietly orbiting the Sun alongside the planet. This discovery, detailed in a recent study by Valerio Carruba and his team at São Paulo State University, is like uncovering an entire continent that was previously unknown. The research, published on the preprint server arXiv, uncovers important insights about the dynamics of Venus’ orbit and could have significant implications for our understanding of the solar system.

Venus has long been one of the most mysterious planets in our solar system, but its potential connection to a new class of asteroids adds an intriguing layer to its profile. These asteroids, referred to as Venus co-orbital asteroids, are difficult to observe and remain largely hidden from Earth’s telescopes. The new study’s findings raise questions about how many more of these objects could be lurking out of sight, potentially offering critical information about the inner workings of our solar system.

The Venus Co-Orbital Asteroids: A Hidden Family Venus co-orbital asteroids share an orbit with the planet Venus, meaning they move in step with the planet around the Sun. To date, only about 20 of these asteroids have been confirmed, but Carruba and his team believe that number could be far higher. Their simulations suggest that hundreds of these asteroids might be scattered in the vicinity of Venus, hidden from view due to their positioning near the Sun.

“It’s like discovering a continent you didn’t know existed,” Valerio Carruba, who led the research, told Space.com. “It’s very likely there are other asteroids we don’t observe today.” This insight points to a significant gap in our knowledge of the inner solar system, highlighting the possibility of a much larger population of Venus co-orbital asteroids than previously thought.

Challenges in Observing Venus Co-Orbital Asteroids One of the key challenges in observing Venus co-orbital asteroids lies in their location relative to the Sun. These asteroids are positioned near the Sun from our perspective on Earth, which makes them difficult to detect with ground-based telescopes. Their rapid movement further complicates matters, as it becomes challenging to track their trajectories. Despite these difficulties, Carruba and his team have developed sophisticated simulations that suggest these objects may be far more numerous than current data shows.

“It’s impossible to say for sure,” Carruba said, “but I suspect we will find hundreds of asteroids around Venus.” These simulations, which modeled the orbits of hundreds of hypothetical Venus co-orbital asteroids, offer new insights into the dynamic behavior of these objects. The study also shows that some asteroids may follow chaotic orbits, which can shift over time and potentially bring them closer to Earth.

Dynamic Behavior of Venus Co-Orbital Asteroids The dynamics of Venus co-orbital asteroids are unique and intriguing. While some follow near-circular orbits, others trace elongated paths that periodically bring them closer to Earth. These objects remain gravitationally bound to Venus for thousands of years, and the simulations suggest they could stay in the planet’s orbit for an average of about 12,000 years. Despite their chaotic behavior, the possibility of an asteroid crossing Earth’s orbit seems extremely remote in the near future, though it is worth studying for the long-term implications.

“We should know about these objects,” said Carruba. “They are very interesting dynamically — I think that would be a reason to continue to study them.” Understanding the orbits and behavior of Venus co-orbital asteroids could provide valuable insights into the mechanics of planetary orbits and the potential hazards posed by near-Earth objects.

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TOPICS: Astronomy; History; Outdoors; Science; UFO's
KEYWORDS: asteroid; asteroids; astronomy; catastrophism; comet; comets; immanuelvelikovsky; magnetotail; science; velikovsky; venus; worldsincollision

[Red Badger]

Venus Ping!..................

[omni-scientist]

The headline is wrong. The article says the asteroids are in the same orbit as Venus, not orbiting the planet.

[antidemoncrat]

Not news ... for a long time assteroids have been orbiting Uranus

[Seruzawa]

One more truck of flaming grant money, please.

[BenLurkin]

[Verginius Rufus]

Amazing what gravity can do. Isaac Newton had no idea when he invented it.

I believe there are asteroids called Trojans which have orbits tied to Jupiter, either 60 degrees ahead or 60 degrees behind Jupiter. So it would make sense for the same thing to happen with other planets, although Venus' relative proximity to the sun may make it harder to keep the asteroids under control.

Does the earth have any asteroids like this?

[Red Badger]

I believe we do...............

[SunkenCiv]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Earth_trojan

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_objects_at_Lagrange_points

[SunkenCiv]

Thanks for the ping.

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The rest of the 'magnetotail' keyword, sorted:

• Wild New Paper Claims Earth May Be Surrounded by a Giant Magnetic Tunnel [10/15/2021]
• The northern and southern lights are different. Here's why [01/26/2019]
• Huge magnetic tail discovered behind Mars [10/22/2017]
• The Moon is Surrounded by Neon, NASA Probe Reveals [08/18/2015]
• Strange Space Object Stumps Astronomers; Appears to be Asteroid but Has Six Comet-Like Tails [11/09/2013]
• Comet-like tail discovered trailing planet Mercury [09/22/2010]
• Mercury found to have comet-like appearance by satellites looking at sun [09/22/2010]
• Planet Found With Comet-like Tail [07/21/2010]
• Scorched Alien Planet Has a Comet Tail (153 light-years from Earth) [07/15/2010]
• The Moon And The Magnetotail [04/21/2008]
• Venus' Tail of the Unexpected [02/23/2008]
• Spacecraft Surfs Jupiter's Magnetic Tail [10/19/2007]
• Discovery of Vast Tail on Dying Star Promises Clues to Solar Birth [08/15/2007]

[verum ago]

It seems to me in the past 10 or so years the apparent scientific and mathematical literacy of journalism majors (which has never been held in high regard) has absolutely nosedived. It’s difficult to find a piece without at least one embarrassing fundamental error.

Just a couple days ago I saw a followup on the Titan submersible implosion that was very well polished, and clearly had a wide variety of sources, and was good about citations. Yet it also listed pressures that were off by orders of magnitude, and claimed that the ~500m depth mark was important because that’s when the pressure begins to press against all sides of a sub, and not just downward from on top. I had to read that part more than once just to make sure the author really was claiming that hydrostatic pressure somehow works fundamentally differently at different depths. The author also clearly did not understand the concept of fatigue in a material in the slightest, but was more than happy to lecture the reader about it. I suppose that’s one of the things that really rubs me the wrong way about the state of modern journalism- even if they’re not trying to cram their politics down your throat, they still regard themselves as smarter and more broadly qualified than their audience, and in my opinion that’s never been less true.

I guess we know what courses had to be cut to make way for the woke indoctrination ones.

[Verginius Rufus]

Thanks. Astronomy has gotten a lot more complicated than it was when I was a kid, when there were 9 planets, Jupiter had only 12 moons, and no one knew what the far side of the moon looked like.

[55Ford]

Am I the only one to suggest that NASA is Fake News, and is really just a huge money sucking vortex.

[Buttons12]

Swarming like flies on honey. And no one ever noticed this before?

[PIF]

As you would expect from a mass hurled out of Jupiter - it would have a lot of debris surrounding it - cf Velikovski

[Buttons12]

It’s unclear for sure. Are they orbiting Venus, or orbiting the sun in the orbit of Venus, like the Trojans of Jupiter? (Those are found roughly 60 degrees on either side of Jupiter.)

[Buttons12]

Or are these bodies on a different orbital plane?

[Some Fat Guy in L.A.]

Almost as if Venus came through the solar system as a comet and swept up some asteroids in its wake.......paging Dr. Velikovsky.....

[linMcHlp]

What is on the far side of the sun - and possibly in earth’s orbit? Might “physics” require at least some object - Orbital Opposites - that affect the shape of the orbital path?

For example, with not counter-balance on the far side, the orbit is less round; but with some object as a counter-balance, then the orbit is more round?

I have no clue, obviously - never thought of the matter, before.

[telescope115]

A Venusian asteroid belt? That’s a fascinating prospect. Also a little disturbing. How ironic would it be if after all these years we’ve been looking towards the outer solar system for near Earth asteroids as threats, we get slammed by one from the inner solar system that we didn’t even know existed.