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NASA's Lucy Names Asteroid Features After Paleo Sites

9/17/2025

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Summary

Story summary

The International Astronomical Union (IAU) has named features on asteroid Donaldjohanson, visited by NASA's Lucy spacecraft on April 20, 2025.
The asteroid honors paleoanthropologist Donald Johanson, discoverer of the Lucy fossil.
Notable features include Afar Lobus and Olduvai Lobus, named after key paleoanthropological sites.
Lucy's mission targets eight Trojan asteroids, with the next encounter in August 2027, to improve solar system evolution understanding.

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Story summary

The International Astronomical Union (IAU) has named features on asteroid Donaldjohanson, visited by NASA's Lucy spacecraft on April 20, 2025.
The asteroid honors paleoanthropologist Donald Johanson, discoverer of the Lucy fossil.
Notable features include Afar Lobus and Olduvai Lobus, named after key paleoanthropological sites.
Lucy's mission targets eight Trojan asteroids, with the next encounter in August 2027, to improve solar system evolution understanding.