Image source, Getty Images
—
–
For years, scientists still wondered about the origin of the asteroid Kamo’oalewa.
–
This celestial body was discovered in 2016, and astronomers know that it has a relatively close orbit to Earth. Apart from that, not much is known.
–
Recent research, however, has added a clue to the mystery of its emergence: this asteroid could be part of Earth’s moon.
–
“It doesn’t look like what we think it is, if it’s just a ‘normal’ asteroid,” said Benjamin Sharkey, an astronomer at the University of Arizona and lead author of a new study published on Thursday. jurnal Nature.
–
His colleague, Juan Sanchez, who also took part in the study, told the BBC: “Perhaps this asteroid was ejected as a result of a collision between the Moon and a meteor. The material may have come from fragments of the Moon’s surface.”
–
While the only way to find out about Kamo`oalewa naturally, of course, is to get a sample, something that has been possible in recent years, but researchers have a number of reasons to believe the theory is correct.
–
A ‘pseudo satellite’
Kamo’oalewa (formerly known as 2016 HO3) was discovered in 2016 through the Pan-STARRS 1 telescope located in Hawaii, United States.
–
The researchers gave it the Hawaiian name ‘Kamo’oalewa’ which means “regularly moving fragment of the sky”
–
Image source, NASA/JPL-Caltech
—
The orbital path of the asteroid Kamoʻoalewa is similar to Earth’s orbital path – sometimes, it is in front of the Earth and close to the Sun, sometimes behind, and far away.
–
It is approximately 40 meters long, and is technically considered a ‘pseudo satellite’ rather than a ‘moon’.
–
“A quasi-satellite on Earth is an object that orbits at a distance that is almost the same or similar to Earth. Thus, the object remains close to our planet while it is orbiting the Sun,” explains Sanchez.
–
Unlike the Moon, Kamo’oalewa does not orbit the Earth, but the Sun, in parallel paths. So, if our planet disappears, this asteroid continues to orbit.
–
Scientists have so far detected five quasi-satellites, but only Kamo’oalewa has been practically studied.
–
“Kamo’oalewa is easier to observe than any other quasi-satellite that we know of. Once a year, during April, the vision of this celestial body is quite clear, so it can be observed with a large telescope from Earth,” said Sanchez.
–
While others, less visible, and can not be analyzed.
–
During these observations, astronomers discovered that the asteroid was unusually red in color, indicating the presence of metallic minerals.
–
“In simple terms, what we’re basically doing in this study is how sunlight reflects off the surface of the object, and trying to determine what it’s made of. What we found was that this object is made of silicate minerals,” Sanchez said.
–
Image source, Getty Images
—
The research team used a giant telescope at Lowell Observatory in Arizona, USA.
–
“And what caught our attention is that it is closer to the surface of the Moon than the closest asteroids to Earth that have been studied,” he continued.
–
The scientists also concluded that the only known similar rocks were samples brought back from the Apollo Missions in the 1970s.
–
“And this caught our attention, because this asteroid is the first to be tested for something like this. And the fact that we are observing a quasi-Earth satellite, an object orbiting the Sun, very close to Earth, led us to suspect that this object came from the surface of the Moon. ,” said Sanchez.
–
Another theory is that Kamo’oalewa could be part of what is known as a Near-Earth Object, or “Trojan asteroid”, whose material does not come from Earth or the Moon.
–
But the experts from this latest study consider that the research data obtained have “supported” their theory.
–
Image source, Tony873004
—
An illustration of the orbit of CD3 2020 CD3 – other objects such as Kamoʻoalewa – around Earth.
–
“We’re not 100% sure, and we can’t rule out that the object is part of the closest asteroid group to Earth. But the only way is to get a sample of the object, to be sure,” Sanchez explained.
–
And, it’s not that hard.
–
If the Chinese plan goes ahead, this decade Beijing will launch a robotic mission that will land on Kamo’oalewa and a comet, to obtain samples.
–
At that time, it can be ascertained whether Kamoʻoalewa is a fragment of the Moon, or not.
—
:quality(80)/cdn-kiosk-api.telegraaf.nl/5fd1205a-49fe-11ec-9fb7-02d1dbdc35d1.jpg?resize=150%2C150&ssl=1)