Asteroid Dinkinesh, the first cosmic site of NASA's Lucy spacecraft is full of surprises that have left scientists spellbound once again.&nbsp;

Earlier it was found that Dinkinesh, also called "Dinky" sometimes, is actually a binary unit made of two moons, the other one being a tiny shadow of Dinky. This tiny natural satellite was named Selam by NASA's Lucy mission team.

Now, in another revelation, it has been found that Selam isn’t a single moon, as analysed by Lucy mission experts. In other words, Selam is the first contact-binary-asteroid-moon situation. Crazy, right?

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The analysis of Lucy's observations of Dinkinesh and Selam was published in Nature Wednesday.&nbsp;

<h2>Asteroid Dinky's binary Selam is itself a binary unit!&nbsp;</h2>

Dinky's binary Selam appears to be two objects, or lobes, which are in close contact with each other. They are of similar size- one lobe is about 230 yards (210 meters) across and the other is 250 yards (230 meters) across.&nbsp;

Selam is tidally locked to Dinkinesh, meaning one lobe permanently remains closest to the larger asteroid.&nbsp;

Take a look at the new image of Asteroid Dinky by NASA's Lucy spacecraft.
<img alt="Asteroid Dinky with three space rocks" data-align="center" data-entity-type="file" data-entity-uuid="19ed76cd-320f-45f3-bd68-45b900457f37" src="//cdn.wionews.com/sites/default/files/inline-images/F-W4WAIXEAAgJoQ.jpg" />
“There’s a lot more complexity in these small bodies than we originally thought,” says University of Maryland astrogeologist Jessica Sunshine.

“With the additional observations taken by the spacecraft, we were able to better analyse features such as Dinkinesh’s rotation speed and Selam’s orbit pattern.”

The larger asteroid of the three space rocks, Dinkinesh has a strange large trough that runs longitudinally around it, according to a team led by the mission's principal investigator, Hal Levison of the South-west Research Institute in Boulder, Colorado.

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It also has an equatorial ridge that is overlaid on top of that trough and wraps around its rotational axis. Levison's team explains that these features are the result of a massive structural calamity.

The resulting centrifugal force on Dinkinesh then caused some material to lift off the surface of the spinning asteroid, scientists have now learned. That material then settled into a ring of debris around the asteroid's equator.&nbsp;

Some of the material spun off from Dinkinesh fell back onto the asteroid, forming the equatorial ridge on it, while the rest came together to form two satellites.&nbsp;

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The likeness of the size of the two lobes intrigues Levison as he wonders whether this is telling something more about the process of formation of the satellite.&nbsp;

Regardless of the mystery, once the two halves of Selam were formed, they must have edged closer and closer together, moving at very low relative velocity, until they were very close. From there, gravity played its role to hold them together.

Had these lobes touched with a higher relative velocity, they would have either become smushed together to form just a single lobe, or, more likely, smashed each other apart.&nbsp;

(With inputs from agencies)

Asteroid Dinkinesh, the first cosmic site of NASA's Lucy spacecraft is full of surprises that have left scientists spellbound once again. Earlier it was found that Dinkinesh, also called "Dinky" sometimes, is actually a binary unit made of two moons, the other one being a tiny shadow of Dinky.

Asteroid Dinkinesh, the first cosmic site of NASA's Lucy spacecraft is full of surprises that have left scientists spellbound once again. Earlier it was found that Dinkinesh, also called "Dinky" sometimes, is actually a binary unit made of two moons, the other one being a tiny shadow of Dinky. This tiny natural satellite was named Selam by NASA's Lucy mission team. Now, in another revelation, it has been found that Selam isn’t a single moon, as analysed by Lucy mission experts. In other words, Selam is the first contact-binary-asteroid-moon situation. Crazy, right? Also Read | Got yourself tattooed? Study says it may lead to increased risk of cancer The analysis of Lucy's observations of Dinkinesh and Selam was published in Nature Wednesday. Asteroid Dinky's binary Selam is itself a binary unit! Dinky's binary Selam appears to be two objects, or lobes, which are in close contact with each other. They are of similar size- one lobe is about 230 yards (210 meters) across and the other is 250 yards (230 meters) across. Selam is tidally locked to Dinkinesh, meaning one lobe permanently remains closest to the larger asteroid. Take a look at the new image of Asteroid Dinky by NASA's Lucy spacecraft. “There’s a lot more complexity in these small bodies than we originally thought,” says University of Maryland astrogeologist Jessica Sunshine. “With the additional observations taken by the spacecraft, we were able to better analyse features such as Dinkinesh’s rotation speed and Selam’s orbit pattern.” The larger asteroid of the three space rocks, Dinkinesh has a strange large trough that runs longitudinally around it, according to a team led by the mission's principal investigator, Hal Levison of the South-west Research Institute in Boulder, Colorado. Also Read | China’s secret spaceplane ejects mysterious object into Earth’s orbit. US hunts it down It also has an equatorial ridge that is overlaid on top of that trough and wraps around its rotational axis. Levison's team explains that these features are the result of a massive structural calamity. The resulting centrifugal force on Dinkinesh then caused some material to lift off the surface of the spinning asteroid, scientists have now learned. That material then settled into a ring of debris around the asteroid's equator. Some of the material spun off from Dinkinesh fell back onto the asteroid, forming the equatorial ridge on it, while the rest came together to form two satellites. Also Read | High levels of ‘forever chemicals’ found in water sources near Bangladesh garment factories can cause cancer The likeness of the size of the two lobes intrigues Levison as he wonders whether this is telling something more about the process of formation of the satellite. Regardless of the mystery, once the two halves of Selam were formed, they must have edged closer and closer together, moving at very low relative velocity, until they were very close. From there, gravity played its role to hold them together. Had these lobes touched with a higher relative velocity, they would have either become smushed together to form just a single lobe, or, more likely, smashed each other apart. (With inputs from agencies)

Crazy surprise! Asteroid 'Dinky' is not binary but a group of 3 space rocks, NASA's Lucy probe finds

NASA’s Lucy spacecraft, known for visiting asteroids is set to get fired up in space on January 31 for its next trip to explore Trojan asteroids. Lucy earlier performed a flyby around asteroid Dinky and discovered its twin, and is now getting ready for its new voyage to unexplored cosmic spaces.

Lucy is slated to visit two main belt asteroids as well as six Jupiter Trojans - asteroids that share Jupiter’s orbit around the Sun. Its firing-off on Wednesday will be the first time since its launch in August 2021.&nbsp;

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The firing of Lucy’s main engines will see the spacecraft burn through around half of its onboard fuel, as per NASA. This will be followed by a second and much larger manoeuvre, which is slated for Saturday (Feb 3).

<h2>NASA’s Lucy to fire off for its future voyages</h2>

Lucy will be fired off during two operations to change its velocity for further lined-up missions. The aim is to change its velocity by around 2,000 miles per hour (3,217 kilometres per hour).

The spacecraft had changed its manoeuvres earlier as well, but they were not as significant as the upcoming two manoeuvres.

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Over the next week, Lucy will complete two deep space maneuvers to change the spacecraft’s velocity by about 2,000 mph! In Dec., Lucy will use the Earth's gravity for a 2nd time to slingshot through the main asteroid belt &amp; continue on its journey. <a href="https://t.co/Zs9B0lFn8X">https://t.co/Zs9B0lFn8X</a> <a href="https://t.co/8W3S8tJuna">pic.twitter.com/8W3S8tJuna</a>
— NASA Goddard (@NASAGoddard) <a href="https://twitter.com/NASAGoddard/status/1752455690415677819?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">January 30, 2024</a></blockquote>
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Following these manoeuvres, the next major milestone for Lucy will be a flyby of Earth in December 2024, at which time the spacecraft will get a second gravity assist from our planet that will hopefully slingshot it onto a new trajectory. Lucy will come as close as 230 miles (370 kilometres) to the Earth during this flyby.

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The sequence of manoeuvres planned for 2024 will alter the spacecraft's trajectory away from its present solar orbit, which closely traverses the primary asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter. This adjustment helped it encounter the tiny asteroid Dinkinesh, or 'Dinky', on 1 November 2023. Notably, Lucy's exploration revealed that Dinky is, in fact, a binary asteroid system, effectively a double asteroid.

After this, Lucy’s other mission will be to track around Jupiter Trojans. These Trojans are arranged in two loose groups, with one slightly ahead of the gas giant, the Greek camp, and another behind it, the Trojan camp.&nbsp;

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Lucy will visit the Greek camp of Trojan asteroids first, setting its sights on the asteroid Eurybates and its satellite or 'moonlet' Queta in August 2027, as per NASA.

After this, the spacecraft will fly past another four Trojan asteroids and three more moonlets, eventually making a final visit to Earth in 2031 before the Lucy mission draws to a close in 2033.&nbsp;

(With inputs from agencies)

NASA’s Lucy spacecraft, known for visiting asteroids is set to get fired up in space on January 31 for its next trip to explore Trojan asteroids. Lucy earlier performed a flyby around asteroid Dinky and discovered its twin, and is now getting ready for its new voyage to unexplored cosmic spaces.

NASA’s Lucy spacecraft, known for visiting asteroids is set to get fired up in space on January 31 for its next trip to explore Trojan asteroids. Lucy earlier performed a flyby around asteroid Dinky and discovered its twin, and is now getting ready for its new voyage to unexplored cosmic spaces. Lucy is slated to visit two main belt asteroids as well as six Jupiter Trojans - asteroids that share Jupiter’s orbit around the Sun. Its firing-off on Wednesday will be the first time since its launch in August 2021. Also Read | A bacteria-murdering virus may come in handy to kill superbugs The firing of Lucy’s main engines will see the spacecraft burn through around half of its onboard fuel, as per NASA. This will be followed by a second and much larger manoeuvre, which is slated for Saturday (Feb 3). NASA’s Lucy to fire off for its future voyages Lucy will be fired off during two operations to change its velocity for further lined-up missions. The aim is to change its velocity by around 2,000 miles per hour (3,217 kilometres per hour). The spacecraft had changed its manoeuvres earlier as well, but they were not as significant as the upcoming two manoeuvres. Over the next week, Lucy will complete two deep space maneuvers to change the spacecraft’s velocity by about 2,000 mph! In Dec., Lucy will use the Earth's gravity for a 2nd time to slingshot through the main asteroid belt & continue on its journey. https://t.co/Zs9B0lFn8X pic.twitter.com/8W3S8tJuna — NASA Goddard (@NASAGoddard) January 30, 2024 × Following these manoeuvres, the next major milestone for Lucy will be a flyby of Earth in December 2024, at which time the spacecraft will get a second gravity assist from our planet that will hopefully slingshot it onto a new trajectory. Lucy will come as close as 230 miles (370 kilometres) to the Earth during this flyby. Also Read | Scientists create AI-powered robot that reads braille at breakneck speed The sequence of manoeuvres planned for 2024 will alter the spacecraft's trajectory away from its present solar orbit, which closely traverses the primary asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter. This adjustment helped it encounter the tiny asteroid Dinkinesh, or 'Dinky', on 1 November 2023. Notably, Lucy's exploration revealed that Dinky is, in fact, a binary asteroid system, effectively a double asteroid. After this, Lucy’s other mission will be to track around Jupiter Trojans. These Trojans are arranged in two loose groups, with one slightly ahead of the gas giant, the Greek camp, and another behind it, the Trojan camp. Also Read | Do moons exist outside our solar systems? Researchers argue on discovery of exomoons Lucy will visit the Greek camp of Trojan asteroids first, setting its sights on the asteroid Eurybates and its satellite or 'moonlet' Queta in August 2027, as per NASA. After this, the spacecraft will fly past another four Trojan asteroids and three more moonlets, eventually making a final visit to Earth in 2031 before the Lucy mission draws to a close in 2033. (With inputs from agencies)

Fired up! NASA’s Lucy spacecraft starts main engines in space for the first time since its launch

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Crazy surprise! Asteroid 'Dinky' is not binary but a group of 3 space rocks, NASA's Lucy probe finds

Fired up! NASA’s Lucy spacecraft starts main engines in space for the first time since its launch