Text written in Basque and translated automatically by Elia without any subsequent editing. SEE ORIGINAL

Photo of the week: Asteroid Donaldjohanson

The Lucy spacecraft has been photographing and studying the characteristics of asteroids in the main asteroid belt of our galaxy for 12 years. On this occasion, he investigates the asteroid named after the anthropologist Donald Johanson, who discovered the famous Ethiopian fossil that gave its name to the spacecraft.

Lucy has already clarified some facts about the origin of the asteroid: the orbit of the body reveals that Donaljohanson is part of the Erigone asteroid family, released by a giant collision. And the density of the craters that it has on its surface also coincides with the data, which have been found to be about 155 million years old. However, small craters have been missed, suggesting that they would be removed by seismic movements caused by a more recent impact.

On the surface, iron phyllosilicates have been found, and liquid waters are thought to have been modified. However, it seems to be a process halted at some point by water scarcity or heat insufficiency, having observed a partial transformation of the minerals.