NASA's Lucy Spacecraft Reveals Asteroid Dinkinesh's Satellite to be a Contact Binary System, Making it a Trio of Space Rocks

NASA's Lucy probe unearths a first-ever "contact binary" orbiting asteroid Dinkinesh, showcasing two smaller objects in contact rather than one typical satellite, leaving scientists puzzled and excited.

NASA's Lucy spacecraft discovered that small asteroid Dinkinesh is a binary system, composed of two space rocks, during its inaugural flyby on November 1, 2023.
Surprisingly, a subsequent observation disclosed that the smaller object orbiting Dinkinesh is a 'contact binary'—two smaller objects in direct contact. This marks the first time a contact binary has been spotted orbiting another asteroid.
The contact binary was detected six minutes after the spacecraft's closest approach, having traveled approximately 960 miles from the first detection point.
The asteroid Dinkinesh and its two accompanying bodies are the first of 11 asteroids that Lucy is slated to explore throughout its 12-year mission. The primary goal of this mission is to study the Jupiter Trojan asteroids.
The Lucy mission, launched in October 2021, will go on to investigate the main asteroid belt again in 2025, and proceed to study the Trojan asteroids from 2027 to 2033 in an attempt to contribute to our understanding of the early days of our solar system.