JWST Observations of Asteroid 2024 YR4 Rule Out a 2032 Lunar Impact and Demonstrate a New Regime for Planetary Defense Follow-up

arXiv:2605.20498 · astro-ph.EP, astro-ph.IM · Submitted 2026-05-19 · Read on arXiv

Julien de Wit, Andrew S. Rivkin, Marco Micheli, Davide Farnocchia, Artem Y. Burdanov, Bryan Holler, David J. Tholen, Thomas Mueller, Maxime Devogele, Dawn Graninger, Heidi B. Hammel, Stefanie N. Milam, Isaac S. Narrett, Petr Pravec, Cristina A. Thomas

astro-ph.EP, astro-ph.IM

Submitted: 2026-05-19

Comments: Published by The Astrophysical Journal Letters

Journal ref: 2026 ApJL 1003 L21

DOI: 10.3847/2041-8213/ae6a95

License: http://arxiv.org/licenses/nonexclusive-distrib/1.0/

Terminology

• Aperture — 12× in this paper · explained in 1 episode
• Calibration — 9× in this paper · explained in 7 episodes
• Core — 6× in this paper · explained in 2 episodes
• Accuracy — 3× in this paper · explained in 1 episode
• Hybrid Approach — 3× in this paper · explained in 4 episodes
• Robustness — 3× in this paper · explained in 5 episodes
• Aperture Correction — 2× in this paper · explained in 1 episode
• Consistency — 2× in this paper · explained in 3 episodes
• Aperture Photometry — 1× in this paper · explained in 1 episode
• Mikulski Archive for Space Telescopes — 1× in this paper

Sources

• 2024 YR4: Identification of Possible Precoveries in 2016 IPTF Data
• Observation Timelines for the Potential Lunar Impact of Asteroid 2024 YR4

Related papers

• PDS 70 c and SR 12 c: Observational Constraints on Giant-Planet and Satellite Formation
• Two-stage disruption of resonant chains
• Detectability of resolved hydrogen lines from the accretion shock at gas giants and their CPDs
• Binary-lens Microlensing Degeneracy: Impact on Planetary Sensitivity and Mass-ratio Function
• Atmospheric escape fractionates secondary but not primary atmospheres
• The Occurrence Rate of Nearby Planetary Companions to Hot Jupiters