NASA Reveals Detailed Image of Unusually Shaped Asteroid

Written by Fabio Lucas Carvalho

Published on 23/04/2025 at 08:07

Updated on 23/04/2025 at 08:10

A sonda Lucy da NASA capturou este close do asteroide Donaldjohanson a uma distância de cerca de 1.067 km. (NASA / Goddard / SwRI / JHUAPL / NOIRLab)

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NASA Reveals Unprecedented And Highly Detailed Image Of An Asteroid With A Shape Considered Uncommon By Astronomers. The Irregular Structure Filled With Protrusions Surprised Researchers

NASA Recently Released An Impressive Image Of The Asteroid Donaldjohanson, Captured By The Lucy Spacecraft. The Object, Located In The Asteroid Belt Between Mars And Jupiter, Has A Peculiar Structure.

It Is A Contact Binary, Formed By The Collision Of Two Smaller Celestial Bodies, Which Gives The Asteroid An Appearance That Resembles Two Joined Ice Cream Cones.

Mission Lucy Approaches Less Than A Thousand Kilometers

The Record Was Made On April 20, When The Lucy Spacecraft Came Within About 960 Kilometers Of The Asteroid.

ARTICLE CONTINUES BELOW

Name In Honor Of The Discovery Of Lucy

The Asteroid Was Named In Honor Of The Anthropologist Who Discovered The Fossils Of Lucy, An Important Ancestor Of Humanity.

Now, It Also Integrates The Trajectory Of The Spacecraft That Carries The Same Name. For Scientists, The Uncommon Shape Of Donaldjohanson May Help To Better Understand The Collision Processes That Gave Rise To The Planets Of The Solar System.

Encounter Marks A New Stage Of The Mission

This Encounter Took Place Three And A Half Years After The Launch Of The Mission And 17 Months After The Lucy Spacecraft Visited Its First Target, The Asteroid Dinkinesh, And Its Mini-Moon, Selam.

Like Donaldjohanson, Selam Is Also A Contact Binary. Researchers Consider These Two Encounters As Warm-Ups Before The Main Goal Of The Mission: To Explore The So-Called Trojan Asteroids Of Jupiter.

The Trojan Asteroids Are Trapped In Specific Points In Jupiter’s Orbit Due To The Planet’s Gravity. No Spacecraft Has Ever Approached These Objects.

The Lucy Mission, With An Estimated Cost Of US$ 989 Million, Is Expected To Change That. According To NASA, The Spacecraft Is Continuing Its Journey Through The Main Asteroid Belt And Is Expected To Reach Its First Trojan, Named Eurybates, In August 2027. Four More Encounters With Trojans Are Planned By 2033.

In The Coming Weeks, Scientists Will Analyze The Images Taken By Lucy. The Spacecraft Is Equipped With Black And White Imaging Sensors, Color Imaging, Infrared Spectrometer, And Thermal Infrared. This Data May Provide New Clues About The Origin Of Celestial Bodies And The History Of The Solar System.

NASA Reveals Detailed Image of Unusually Shaped Asteroid

NASA Reveals Unprecedented And Highly Detailed Image Of An Asteroid With A Shape Considered Uncommon By Astronomers. The Irregular Structure Filled With Protrusions Surprised Researchers

Mission Lucy Approaches Less Than A Thousand Kilometers

Name In Honor Of The Discovery Of Lucy

Encounter Marks A New Stage Of The Mission

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NASA Reveals Detailed Image of Unusually Shaped Asteroid

NASA Reveals Unprecedented And Highly Detailed Image Of An Asteroid With A Shape Considered Uncommon By Astronomers. The Irregular Structure Filled With Protrusions Surprised Researchers

Mission Lucy Approaches Less Than A Thousand Kilometers

Name In Honor Of The Discovery Of Lucy

Encounter Marks A New Stage Of The Mission

A village with 115 inhabitants wants new residents: it offers a house, a job, up to 44 thousand euros in benefits, almost free rent, an annual grant of 8 thousand euros for 3 years, and a 20 thousand euro incentive for businesses in the mountains of Italy.

NASA is offering US$ 750,000 to people from anywhere in the world who solve a problem that could decide survival on Mars: creating food for astronauts without relying on resupply from Earth.

While countries spend billions to draw water from the sea, a Nobel-winning scientist creates a container-sized machine that extracts up to 1,000 liters per day from dry air and uses ultrasound to release water in minutes, even in the middle of the desert.

Belgium will sink 23 giant concrete caissons, each weighing 22,000 tons, in the North Sea to build the world’s first artificial energy island 45 km off the coast, forming offshore electrical walls.

New microwave that can replace three appliances hits the market: Sharp launches 3-in-1 model that combines air fryer, convection oven, and heating in 0.9 cubic feet for small kitchens

While Brazil has been discussing bullet trains for 16 years, China delivers 5 new high-speed lines in 2026, surpasses 50,000 km of HSR, and moves 1 billion passengers in a single year.

With an 88-meter wingspan, a capacity of 250 tons, six engines, and 32 wheels, the Ukrainian giant became the greatest symbol of extreme air transport and one of the most impressive machines in aviation history.

A public school student creates an “electric defensive” that uses only water, salt, and energy to protect crops without industrial pesticides, wins the Young Scientists Award 2025, and transforms an invisible chemical process into a solution for small farmers.

Xiaomi goes beyond cell phones and launches an electric kettle with 316Ti titanium steel, 1,800 W of power, and technology that keeps water hot for 24 hours, does not rust, prevents a metallic taste, and costs around R$ 101 in China.

Goodbye traditional microwave: Brastemp surprises and launches a 23-liter version with Multi-Prep function for brownie, risotto, and brigadeiro, smart weight-based defrosting, QR Code with recipes, and an initial price of R$ 639 in Brazil.

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A public school student creates an “electric defensive” that uses only water, salt, and energy to protect crops without industrial pesticides, wins the Young Scientists Award 2025, and transforms an invisible chemical process into a solution for small farmers.

Brazil wants to become a military power, and missiles capable of hitting targets up to 200 km away begin to be produced in SIATT’s national factory, which already delivers the first batch to the Army and expands strategic surveillance of the Blue Amazon.

Xiaomi goes beyond cell phones and launches an electric kettle with 316Ti titanium steel, 1,800 W of power, and technology that keeps water hot for 24 hours, does not rust, prevents a metallic taste, and costs around R$ 101 in China.

The IMF shows Brazil’s reality in the coming years and projects the country back into the top 10 largest economies in the world by 2030, with a GDP of US$ 3.20 trillion and a jump of US$ 560 billion in five years.

Goodbye traditional microwave: Brastemp surprises and launches a 23-liter version with Multi-Prep function for brownie, risotto, and brigadeiro, smart weight-based defrosting, QR Code with recipes, and an initial price of R$ 639 in Brazil.