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Last December, scientists discovered an asteroid moving around the Sun. It turned out that they are, in fact, only two. And they are gravitationally related to each other.
Named this 2017 YE5 object, and when it was discovered on December 21, 2017, astronomers could not understand if this one was the body or two, interconnected like for example, comet 67P. But in late June, the asteroids approached as close as possible to Earth – at a distance of about 6 million km.
Between 21 and 26 June, astronomers from the Arecibo Observatory in Puerto Rico and the National Radioastronomy Observatory of West Virginia, United States, worked together to study the site. From Arecibo, scientists have sent an asteroid signal to the National Astronomical Radio Observatory of the Green Bank Radio Telescope.
Both teams watched 2017 YE5 trying independently to determine the distance between the two objects. Asteroids are known to orbit after 20-24 hours
Astronomers believe that about 15% of all near-Earth asteroids over 200 meters in diameter are double. However, they usually consist of a larger and a smaller asteroid. There are even three, like the asteroid Florence, who escorted two satellites beyond Earth in August and September of last year.
But 2017 YE5 is a special. Each of his objects is about 900 meters in diameter. In addition, they reflect the radar signal differently. This means that they probably have different density, surface composition and relief. All this may mean that initially, it was two separate objects close to each other and forming their own closed orbit.
Further observations and studies are needed for further information. 2017 YE5 requires 1730 days for a tour around the Sun, equal to 4.74 years. So, the next time the asteroid approaches Earth, we will have a chance to learn more. Until now, a data analysis is underway – perhaps that they will help determine the density of 2017 YE5, which can help determine the internal structure and composition of the double asteroid .
Source: Sciencealert.com
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