Overview

• On November 1, 2023, NASA's Lucy spacecraft successfully conducted a close flyby of the small main-belt asteroid Dinkinesh, gaining insights about early solar system history.
• The flyby served as a test run for the spacecraft's instruments and allowed the NASA team to adjust its approach to future Trojan targets, which are planned for the 2027 mission.
• One of Lucy's goals is to examine the diversity of Jupiter's Trojans, a mysterious group of asteroids thought to be relics from the early solar system.
• Despite difficulties with one of the solar panel arrays, Lucy performed well during the Dinkinesh flyby, validating the earlier decision to proceed with the mission as planned.
• The information gathered from Dinkinesh could help scientists understand the changes main-belt asteroids undergo as they transform into near-Earth asteroids.
• Overall, Dinkinesh's flyby was seen as not only an engineering test but also an exciting opportunity for planetary scientists to gather data on a small asteroid.