Courtesy of Forbes

Lucy NASA Berhasil Terbang Lintas Asteroid Donaldjohanson dalam Misi Epik Antariksa

To provide an update on the progress of NASA's Lucy spacecraft mission and its recent flyby of the asteroid Donaldjohanson.

21 Apr 2025, 20.35 WIB

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Ikhtisar 15 Detik

Misi Lucy bertujuan untuk menjelajahi asteroid Trojan dan mempelajari sejarah tata surya.
Asteroid Donaldjohanson memiliki karakteristik unik, termasuk perubahan kecerahan setiap 10 hari.
Lucy membawa kapsul waktu yang berisi pesan dari tokoh terkenal untuk generasi mendatang.

San Antonio, Texas, United States - NASA's Lucy spacecraft, launched in 2021, is on an ambitious mission to explore multiple asteroids, including those in the Trojan asteroid belt. Recently, Lucy successfully completed a flyby of the asteroid Donaldjohanson, a three-mile-wide object between Mars and Jupiter. This marks the second asteroid flyby by Lucy, following its encounter with Dinkinesh in November 2023.

Donaldjohanson is a relatively young asteroid that brightens and dims every 10 days, suggesting it has an elongated shape and rotates. Dr. Hal Levison, the principal investigator of the Lucy mission, described Donaldjohanson as a 'peculiar' object. Lucy's mission includes visiting eight Trojan asteroids by 2033, with its next target being Eurybates and its satellite Queta in August 2027.

Lucy will orbit the sun six times and return to Earth for gravity assists but will never come back permanently. Instead, it will travel between the Trojan asteroids and Earth's orbit for millions of years. The spacecraft carries a time capsule with messages from notable figures like Albert Einstein, Carl Sagan, Martin Luther King Jr., and The Beatles. The mission aims to gather valuable data to understand more about the early solar system.

Referensi:
[1] https://www.forbes.com/sites/jamiecartereurope/2025/04/21/nasas-lucy-spacecraft-phones-home-after-peculiar-asteroid-encounter/

Analisis Kami

"Keberhasilan terbang lintas terhadap asteroid Donaldjohanson membuka peluang besar untuk analisis mendalam mengenai asteroid muda yang memiliki bentuk tidak biasa, yang mungkin memberi wawasan baru tentang dinamika rotasi dan evolusi struktur asteroid. Lucy juga membuktikan bahwa misi multi-objek dengan waktu panjang dapat mengoptimalkan penggunaan sumber daya dan menghasilkan hasil riset luar angkasa yang luar biasa berharga."

Analisis Ahli

Dr. Hal Levison

"Objek pemanasan awal seperti Donaldjohanson sangat menarik karena mereka menawarkan wawasan unik tentang variasi dan keunikan asteroid Troya, memberikan konteks penting untuk misi utama Lucy."

Prediksi Kami

Misi Lucy akan memberikan data baru yang signifikan tentang karakteristik asteroid Troya, yang bisa membantu pemahaman kita tentang pembentukan tata surya dan evolusi planet secara lebih detail di masa depan.