September 9 (UPI) – The Very Large Telescope at the Southern European Observatory has provided astronomers with the best view of Kleopatra, the asteroid “dog bone”.
Using high-resolution images captured by VLT, astronomers were able to accurately limit the shape and mass of the asteroid.
The latest research, detailed in a couple of articles, published Thursday in the journal Astronomy & Astrophysics, may provide clues as to the origin and evolution of Kleopatra and her two moons.
“Kleopatra is truly a unique body in our solar system,” Franck Marchis, who led the research, said in a press release.
“Science is advancing a lot thanks to the study of strange extreme values. I think Kleopatra is one of them and understanding this multiple asteroid complex can help us learn more about our solar system,” said Marchis, a senior planetary astronomer. of the SETI Institute in Mountain View, California.
The bone-like shape of Kleopatra, two lobes connected by a thick neck, was first revealed by radar observations captured 20 years ago.
In 2008, Marchis and his research partners saw the two moons of Kleopatra. They named the couple Alex Helios and Cleo Selena, in honor of two of the Egyptian queen’s three children.
Researchers characterize the dimensions of Kleopatra using images captured by VLT’s SPHERE instrument between 2017 and 2019. As Kleopatra rotates, astronomers were able to capture images of the asteroid from various angles.
High-resolution images allowed scientists to build an accurate 3D model of the asteroid, revealing its outlines and volume. The investigation also confirmed that one of Kleopatra’s lobes was larger than the other.
In addition to restricting the size and shape of Kleopatra, SPHERE data also showed previous estimates of the orbits of the two asteroid moons that were defective.
“This had to be resolved,” said Miroslav Brož, a researcher at Charles University in Prague, Czech Republic. “Because if the orbits of the moons were wrong, everything would go wrong, including Kleopatra’s mass.”
The scientists used the new observations and the model to estimate the influence of Kleopatra’s gravity on lunar orbits.
The calculations, in turn, allowed the researchers to determine the mass of the asteroid, revealing that it was 35% lower than previous approximations.
Kleopatra is believed to be composed of several metals, but its low density suggests that it is highly porous and probably a conglomerate of rocks and debris.
Because the debris pile spins at such a high speed, almost fast enough to cause the entire structure to fall apart, scientists suspect that even minor impacts would be enough to release the material, which Kleopatra is likely to do. get your two moons.
As revealing as VLT images demonstrated, astronomers are eager to capture even higher-definition images using the Extremely Large Telescope, which is expected to capture the “first light” in 2026.
“I can’t wait to point the ELT towards Kleopatra, to see if there are more moons and to perfect their orbits to detect small changes,” Marchis said.