Lucy flies by binary asteroid
Posted: Sun, Nov 5, 2023, 11:43 AM ET (1643 GMT)
Images from NASA's Lucy spacecraft revealed the asteroid it just flew by is a binary. An image released Thursday from the flyby of the small main belt asteroid Dinkinesh revealed a second, smaller asteroid behind it. Planetary scientists had speculated that Dinkinesh, about 790 meters across, might be a binary based on its changing brightness. The smaller object is about 220 meters across. The flyby was primarily a test for Lucy, and project officials said the spacecraft and its instruments worked well.
Images from NASA's Lucy spacecraft revealed the asteroid it just flew by is a binary. An image released Thursday from the flyby of the small main belt asteroid Dinkinesh revealed a second, smaller asteroid behind it. Planetary scientists had speculated that Dinkinesh, about 790 meters across, might be a binary based on its changing brightness. The smaller object is about 220 meters across. The flyby was primarily a test for Lucy, and project officials said the spacecraft and its instruments worked well.
Related Links:
| <<previous article | next article>> |
|
news in brief
|
|
|
|
news links
|
|
Sunday, January 11
Space Systems Command Awards Task Orders to Launch Missile Warning and Missile Tracking Space
US Space Force — 5:33 pm ET (2233 GMT) Spaceport America Releases 2025 Annual Report
Spaceport America — 5:31 pm ET (2231 GMT) Aetherflux Appoints Joe Yaffe as Chief Operating Officer and Chief Legal Officer
PR Newswire — 5:30 pm ET (2230 GMT) ispace Initiates New Entity in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to Advance Lunar Exploration Partnerships
ispace — 5:22 pm ET (2222 GMT) China applies to put 200,000 satellites in space after calling Starlink a crash risk
South China Morning Post — 8:27 am ET (1327 GMT) |
