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It gets close enough to the Sun to melt lead.
Speed demon
A team of researchers led by Scott Sheppard, a member of the scientific staff at the Carnegie Institution of Science, has discovered the fastest orbiting asteroid in the solar system.
The tiny space rock, barely 1 kilometer in diameter and nicknamed 2021 PH27, circles the Sun in just 113 Earth days. It is the shortest orbital period of all known celestial objects except Mercury, which circles the Sun in just 88 days, although its elliptical orbit passes within 12.4 million kilometers of the Sun, while Mercury never approaches more than 29 million kilometers.
The discovery could shed light on the many asteroids like this one in the solar system, where they came from, and whether they are made of solid rock or just clumps of rubble.
Melting lead
As of 2021, PH27 has moved so close to the Sun, its surface heats up to 900 degrees Fahrenheit, which is hot enough to melt lead.
The asteroid is probably doomed to move ever closer to our star and eventually either be absorbed by the Sun or collide with Mercury or Venus in a few million years.
The researchers suggest he could have been born in the main asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter. Gravitational forces from the inner planets then pushed it toward the Sun over time.
“The fraction of asteroids inside Earth and Venus relative to the outside will give us some insight into the strength and composition of these objects,” Sheppard said in a statement.
This is important if we are ever to have a chance to defend Earth against a future barrage of asteroids.
“Understanding the asteroid population within Earth’s orbit is important to complete the census of near-Earth asteroids, including some of the more likely Earth impactors that may approach Earth during the day and which cannot be easily discovered in most surveys that observe at night, away from the Sun, ”added Sheppard.
Right now, 2021 PH27 is hiding behind the Sun, but early next year researchers are hoping to get another glimpse of the speed demon.
READ MORE: The fastest orbiting asteroid discovered at NOIRLab’s CTIO [CTIO]
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