NASA’s Lucy spacecraft, launched in October 2021 with a mission to explore Jupiter’s asteroids, captured an image of a smaller asteroid near Mars last week, yielding an unexpected revelation for scientists.

The asteroid, dubbed Dinkinesh, which Lucy photographed, has unveiled a fascinating secret: it possesses a diminutive moon in orbit.

This revelation came to light during Lucy’s close encounter with Dinkinesh within Mars’ primary asteroid belt, situated at a distance of nearly 300 million miles, as reported by The Associated Press.

The image was allegedly captured when Lucy approached within 270 miles of Dinkinesh, transmitting the data and images back to Earth, Fox News reported.

The data disclosed crucial details, including Dinkinesh’s size, which measured just a little over half a mile in diameter, and the presence of its petite moon, approximately a tenth of a mile in size.

This undertaking, focused on capturing images of Dinkinesh, served as a practice run for a more extensive mission—an exploration of the enigmatic asteroids in Jupiter’s vicinity.

Written by B.C. Begley