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Rare Three-Body System Discovered in Kuiper Belt

3/7/2025

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Summary

Story summary

Astronomers have made an exciting breakthrough by uncovering a rare three-body system, 148780 Altjira, nestled in the distant Kuiper Belt, 3.7 billion miles from the Sun. This discovery, based on 17 years of observations with the Hubble and Keck telescopes, hints that the inner object might be a pair of closely orbiting asteroids, potentially transforming our grasp of cosmic formation.

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Story summary

Astronomers have made an exciting breakthrough by uncovering a rare three-body system, 148780 Altjira, nestled in the distant Kuiper Belt, 3.7 billion miles from the Sun. This discovery, based on 17 years of observations with the Hubble and Keck telescopes, hints that the inner object might be a pair of closely orbiting asteroids, potentially transforming our grasp of cosmic formation.