Ivan Semeniuk (Asteroids on the Horizon: the 1997XF11 caper, the "Ceres", encounter with Eros and other major stories about minor planets), is an astronomy writer and educator with the Ontario Science Centre and Discovery Channel Canada.

Here, he brings together a fascinating collection of asteroid-related stories and images gleaned from his coverage of astronomy news in recent months. Find out how you can play a role in the effort to explore a poorly understood component of the solar system.