NASA scientists recently made a significant discovery while tracking the orbits of two asteroids as they passed close to Earth.
According to CNN, they found that one of the asteroids has a small moon.
This finding was made possible using planetary radar at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), part of the Deep Space Network that communicates with spacecraft and uses radio waves to detect and study space objects.
The first asteroid, 2011 UL21, passed by Earth on June 27, 2024, at a distance of 4.1 million miles.
Initially discovered in 2011 by the Catalina Sky Survey in Arizona, this asteroid is considered potentially hazardous but not an immediate threat.
Radar images revealed that it is roughly spherical and has a small moon orbiting it, forming a binary system.
However, understanding such binary systems is crucial as it helps scientists learn more about asteroid formation.
While, the second asteroid, 2024 MK, was detected only 13 days before its close approach on June 29, 2024.
It passed at a distance of 184,000 miles from Earth. Spotted by the Asteroid Terrestrial-impact Last Alert System (ATLAS) at Sutherland Observing Station in South Africa, this asteroid is also considered potentially hazardous but not an immediate threat.
Detailed images showed its surface covered in boulders and ridges.
The asteroid’s orbit was altered by Earth’s gravity, shortening its trip around the sun by 24 days.
