Planetary Society logo
  • “Exploration is in our nature.” - Carl Sagan

Bruce Murray Space Image Library

Asteroid Braille

Asteroid Braille
Asteroid Braille Deep Space 1 flew by asteroid 9969 Braille on July 28, 1999, at an altitude of only 26 kilometers. However, the only images of Braille were captured from much farther away, about 14,000 kilometers. NASA / JPL / Ted Stryk

Braille proved to be an irregularly shaped body about 2.2 kilometers long by 0.6 kilometers across. It is probably a Q-type asteroid, dominated by olivine and pyroxene. It is also unusually bright for an asteroid, with an albedo of about 0.34.