Lucy Spots Water Clues on a Tumbling Peanut-Shaped Asteroid
TL;DR
NASA’s Lucy mission found that the main-belt asteroid Donaldjohanson is a bilobed, peanut-shaped body with a complex tumbling rotation gradually altered by sunlight (the YORP effect). Close flyby data revealed iron-rich clays that formed in the presence of liquid water, suggesting water briefly existed on its parent body long ago. At about 155 million years old, Donaldjohanson is younger than Bennu and Ryugu and has stayed in the main belt, offering a contrast as Lucy heads toward studying Jupiter’s Trojan asteroids, starting with Eurybates in 2027.
- NASA’s Lucy Uncovers Ancient Water Clues on a Weirdly Wobbling Asteroid SciTechDaily
- NASA’s Lucy finds a wobbling peanut-shaped asteroid with signs of ancient water ScienceDaily
- NASA Says Donaldjohanson Asteroid Spins in an Unusual Way JournalArta
- Nasa’s spacecraft finds a peanut-shaped asteroid that wobbles The Indian Express
- NASA Finds Donaldjohanson Asteroid Spinning Irregularly JournalArta
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