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NASA’s Lucy spacecraft, en route to Jupiter for an asteroid-hopping mission, has obtained a remarkable close-up image of its second target: the space rock 52246 Donaldjohanson. This asteroid flyby provides crucial data for the mission and insights into the early solar system.
Lucy’s Asteroid Encounter: Donaldjohanson
Lucy commenced its journey in 2021, setting out on a 12-year mission toward Jupiter’s orbit to investigate a largely unexplored group of asteroids known as Jupiter’s Trojans. These asteroids are remnants from our early solar system, sharing the gas giant’s orbit around the sun. The spacecraft is also using opportunities to rehearse for its primary targets. On Sunday, April 20th, it approached within approximately 600 miles (1,000 kilometers) of asteroid 52246 Donaldjohanson, named in honor of American paleoanthropologist Donald Johanson, who co-discovered the Lucy hominid fossil in northern Ethiopia in 1974.
Surprising Discoveries from the Flyby
Initial images captured by Lucy as it neared the three-mile-wide (five-kilometer-wide) asteroid displayed significant variations in brightness. This suggested a slow rotation or an elongated shape. The close-up images confirmed these observations: the asteroid appears to be composed of two distinct lobes connected by a narrow neck, indicating a possible merger of two smaller celestial bodies.
Geological Complexity Revealed
“Asteroid Donaldjohanson exhibits strikingly complex geology,” stated Hal Levison, Lucy’s principal investigator at the Southwest Research Institute in Colorado, in a declaration. “Detailed analysis of these intricate structures promises to unveil vital information about the foundational elements and collisional processes involved in the formation of planets within our solar system.”
The new images illustrate the asteroid’s apparent rotation. However, according to NASA, this motion isn’t due to the asteroid’s actual spin— which is extremely slow, approximately every three years and eight months—but, rather, the consequence of the Lucy spacecraft’s swift passage during the flyby, traveling at a relative speed of 8.3 miles per second (13.4 kilometers per second).
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Revised Size Estimates
Preliminary analysis suggests that the asteroid, likely a fragment from a collision approximately 150 million years ago, is larger than initial estimates. It now appears to be approximately 5 miles (8 km) in length and 2 miles (3.5 km) in width at its broadest point.
Future Trajectory
It’s important to note that the images do not capture the entirety of the asteroid, as it exceeds the Lucy imager’s field of view. The mission team anticipates that it will take approximately one week to fully download the encounter data from the spacecraft. This data will yield a more complete understanding of the asteroid’s shape.
“These early images of Donaldjohanson highlight the remarkable capabilities of the Lucy spacecraft as a tool for discovery,” remarked Tom Statler, the program scientist for the Lucy mission at NASA Headquarters in Washington. “Lucy’s potential to unlock new insights into the history of our solar system when it arrives at the Trojan asteroids is truly immense.”
Following this encounter, Lucy will continue its journey through the asteroid belt towards the Jupiter Trojan asteroids. Its first Trojan flyby, focusing on asteroid Eurybates and its satellite Queta, is scheduled for August 2027.