NASA’s Lucy spacecraft recently captured detailed photos of the elongated asteroid Donaldjohanson, providing new insights into its unique geology and composition. The images show a strikingly complicated structure with two lobes connected by a distinctive “neck” shape.
The asteroid, which measures about 5 miles long and 2 miles wide, appears to have formed from the collision of two smaller bodies. Researchers confirmed their previous observations of Donaldjohanson’s 10-day brightness variation period. The images also reveal that the asteroid is larger than initially estimated.
The Lucy spacecraft traveled within 600 miles of Donaldjohanson, capturing photos at a rate of two seconds apart. The data collected will be analyzed over the coming week and will provide valuable information about the asteroid’s thermal properties.
This latest encounter is part of NASA’s 12-year-long Lucy mission, which aims to study 10 asteroids in the solar system. The spacecraft will now focus on its main target, the Jupiter Trojan asteroid Eurybates, before making a final flyby in August 2027.
Source: https://www.yahoo.com/news/nasa-snaps-detailed-photos-strikingly-194049238.html