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The constant monitoring of space and everything that happens beyond the Earth's atmosphere has been going on for years. Humans are looking for answers and trying to control the possible threats that may loom over the planet in the coming decades. Now, NASA has just announced that a spacecraft has captured a surprising image of an asteroid that could disrupt all the plans in place.
On April 20, the Lucy spacecraft encountered a photograph of the asteroid Donald Johanson, which indicates that it is a binary. This means that the object would be the consequence of a merger of two smaller asteroids that, after a collision, would have ed their structures, resulting in its spectacular shape.
Lucy and its mission on the origins of the solar system
Since it was launched back in 2021, the Lucy spacecraft es around the Earth three times, taking advantage of the planet's orbit to gain momentum and reach its destination and target. It is currently investigating a number of Trojan asteroids, remnants of the solar system that now share Jupiter's orbit.
Experts believe that this type of Trojan asteroid could provide very relevant information to understand how they formed and how the planets migrated to their current positions.
In total, Lucy is expected to visit a total of three main-belt asteroids over the next few years, as well as eight that orbit Jupiter. It is a complicated mission that could shed more light on the origins of the solar system. For the moment, NASA indicates that the spacecraft's next targets are to encounter the asteroid Eurybates in August 2027, which will also involve an encounter with its satellite Queta.