NASA's Lucy science mission will fly by eight asteroids
ByPaul Brinkmann
SCIENCE NEWS SEPT. 28, 2021 / 5:40 PM
An illustration depicts the Lucy spacecraft near an asteroid in the Trojan Belt area of the solar system. Image courtesy of NASASept. 28 (UPI) -- NASA plans to launch its Lucy spacecraft from Florida on Oct. 16 to fly by eight asteroids starting in 2025, marking the first time scientists will gain close-up views of them.
The spacecraft for the $981 million mission is at Kennedy Space Center for launch preparations, which include packing atop an Atlas V rocket for its 12-year voyage. United Launch Alliance plans to send the probe into space from adjacent Cape Canaveral Space Force Station.
Lucy will pass by a single asteroid in 2025 on its way to Jupiter's orbit, where its complex trajectory will take it by seven more asteroids in the so-called Trojan Belt.
The trip will be the first time any spacecraft has visited the Trojan asteroids, Lori Glaze, director of NASA's Planetary Science Division, said Tuesday during an online press conference.
<..snip..>
https://www.upi.com/Science_News/2021/09/28/NASA-Lucy-asteroid-spacecraft-launch/2061632851247/
