Strange 'Equal Mass' Binary Asteroid Found Near Earth - D-brief
Spotting asteroids has become pretty routine for astronomers working with some of the most powerful telescopes on the planet, but every once in a while a seemingly mundane space rock proves to be something special. Late last year, scientists spotted a brand new asteroid, named it 2017 YE5, and added it to the long, long list of near-Earth objects that have already been observed. Astronomers are now saying that the rock isn’t what it seems to be. In late June the rock made its closest pass of Earth for the next 170 years, so scientists decided to spend a little more time studying it before it heads back out again. When they zoomed in on what they thought was a regular ol’ asteroid what they began to see double. 2017 YE5, it turns out, isn’t one asteroid. It’s two. Twin asteroids are incredibly rare, at least here in our Solar System, and they’re a huge treat for scientists whenever they’re spotted. Sometimes larger asteroids are orbited by much smaller rocks, but “equal mass...