2022-01-23, 10:29 PM
(This post was last modified: 2022-01-23, 10:34 PM by bigmasterdrago.)
Just saw this on Spaceweather.com
SUPER-FAST ROTATING ASTEROID: On asteroid 2022 AB, one day is only 3 minutes long. Amateur astronomer Filipp Romanov proved it on Jan. 20th when the asteroid flew past Earth almost 10 million km away. "I monitored the flyby using a 14-inch telescope in Canada," he says. "And I measured the asteroid's light curve." Here it is:
https://spaceweathergallery.com/indiv_up..._id=181767
"The spin period is only 182 seconds," says Romanov.
Believe it or not, this is not the fastest-known spinning asteroid. It's not even in the top 10. Astronomers have discovered 97 space rocks with shorter days than 2022 AB. The fastest is 2017 QG18 with a spin period of only 24 seconds.
How can asteroids spin so fast? Small asteroids like 2017 QG18 (width=10 meters) and 2022 AB (width=70 meters) get their angular momentum from collisions. Glancing blows from other asteroids spin them up, creating asteroid "days" of incredible brevity. Larger asteroids spin more slowly.
SUPER-FAST ROTATING ASTEROID: On asteroid 2022 AB, one day is only 3 minutes long. Amateur astronomer Filipp Romanov proved it on Jan. 20th when the asteroid flew past Earth almost 10 million km away. "I monitored the flyby using a 14-inch telescope in Canada," he says. "And I measured the asteroid's light curve." Here it is:
https://spaceweathergallery.com/indiv_up..._id=181767
"The spin period is only 182 seconds," says Romanov.
Believe it or not, this is not the fastest-known spinning asteroid. It's not even in the top 10. Astronomers have discovered 97 space rocks with shorter days than 2022 AB. The fastest is 2017 QG18 with a spin period of only 24 seconds.
How can asteroids spin so fast? Small asteroids like 2017 QG18 (width=10 meters) and 2022 AB (width=70 meters) get their angular momentum from collisions. Glancing blows from other asteroids spin them up, creating asteroid "days" of incredible brevity. Larger asteroids spin more slowly.