News: Near-Earth asteroid data helps probe possible fifth force of the universe

In 2023, the NASA OSIRIS-REx mission returned a sample of dust and rocks collected on the near-Earth asteroid Bennu. In addition to the information about the universe gleaned from the sample itself, the data generated by OSIRIS-REx might also present an opportunity to probe new physics. As described in the journal Communications Physics, a Nature journal, an international research team led by Los Alamos National Laboratory used the asteroid’s tracking data to study the possible existence of a fifth fundamental force of the universe.

“Interpreting the data we see from tracking Bennu has the potential to add to our understanding of the theoretical underpinnings of the universe, potentially revamping our understanding of the Standard Model of physics, gravity and dark matter,” said Yu-Dai Tsai, lead author on the paper. “The trajectories of objects often feature anomalies that can be useful in discovering new physics.”

Given the implications for planetary defense, near-Earth asteroids are closely tracked. The team applied that ground-based tracking data collected before and during the OSIRIS-REx mission to a probe of extensions of the Standard Model of physics, which describes three of the four known fundamental forces of the universe. Optical and radar astrometric data has helped constrain — or establish to a degree of precision — the trajectory of Bennu since it was discovered in 1999. The OSIRIS-REx mission contributed X-band radiometric and optical navigation tracking data.

“The tight constraints we’ve achieved translate readily to some of the tightest-ever limits on Yukawa-type fifth forces,” said Sunny Vagnozzi, assistant professor at the University of Trento in Italy, and co-author on the paper. “These results highlight the potential for asteroid tracking as a valuable tool in the search for ultralight bosons, dark matter and several well-motivated extensions of the Standard Model.”

> Read the rest of the story here