The term “Dinkinesh” translates to “marvelous” in Amharic, and the small main belt asteroid known as Dinkinesh has certainly lived up to its Ethiopian name. During the flyby conducted by NASA’s spacecraft Lucy, an unexpected discovery was made: instead of encountering just one asteroid as initially anticipated, Lucy found two asteroids in one go.
“Dinkinesh truly lives up to its name, making this a marvelous occurrence,” stated Hal Levison, the principal investigator for Lucy at the Boulder, Colorado branch of the Southwest Research Institute. “Originally, Lucy was planned to fly by seven asteroids. However, with the inclusion of Dinkinesh, two Trojan moons, and now this satellite, we have surpassed our initial expectations by reaching a total of eleven encounters.”
The larger asteroid in the Dinkinesh pair is estimated to be around 805 meters wide (roughly half a mile), while the smaller asteroid measures only 220 meters across (about 0.15 miles). Lockheed Martin, NASA’s partner for the Lucy mission, expressed enthusiasm about the scientific significance of this discovery.
“This collection of images is truly remarkable, indicating the successful operation of the terminal tracking system even when faced with a more challenging target than anticipated,” explained Tom Kennedy, guidance and navigation engineer at Lockheed Martin, in a statement. By referring to the “terminal tracking system,” Kennedy highlighted how it enables spacecraft to locate and observe objects while flying at high speeds. Overall, the Lucy mission aimed to test a wide range of equipment. Asteroids capture the interest of astronomers due to their potential to provide valuable insights into the formation of our solar system and its planets. Just last month, the spacecraft OSIRIS-REx visited Bennu, an asteroid that holds the possibility of colliding with Earth in 2182.
