Asteroid Eros. Colour-coded image of the reflection of 2 micron infrared waves from the mineral pyroxene on the surface of the asteroid Eros. The level of reflectance is colour-coded from red (strong) through yellow and green to blue (weak). Pyroxene is a common silicate mineral found beneath the crusts of rocky bodies in the solar system. This research will aid the understanding of the composition of asteroids and the formation and evolution of the solar system. This image was taken by the Near Infrared Spectrometer (NIS) on board the Near Earth Asteroid Rendezvous (NEAR) spacecraft on 13th-14th February 2000.