Subj : Daily APOD Report
To   : All
From : Alan Ianson
Date : Wed Oct 20 2021 00:20:41

                        Astronomy Picture of the Day

    Discover the cosmos! Each day a different image or photograph of our
      fascinating universe is featured, along with a brief explanation
                    written by a professional astronomer.

                               2021 October 20

                      Lucy Launches to Eight Asteroids
                    Image Credit & Copyright: John Kraus

   Explanation: Why would this mission go out as far as Jupiter -- but
   then not visit Jupiter? Lucy's plan is to follow different leads about
   the origin of our Solar System than can be found at Jupiter -- where
   Juno now orbits. Jupiter is such a massive planet that its gravity
   captures numerous asteroids that orbit the Sun ahead of it -- and
   behind. These trojan asteroids formed all over our Solar System and
   some may have been trapped there for billions of years. Flying by these
   trojan asteroids enables studying them as fossils that likely hold
   unique clues about our early Solar System. Lucy, named after a famous
   fossil skeleton which was named after a famous song, is scheduled to
   visit eight asteroids from 2025 to 2033. Pictured, Lucy's launch was
   captured with reflection last week aboard a powerful Atlas V rocket
   from Cape Canaveral, Florida, USA.

                       Tomorrow's picture: open space
     __________________________________________________________________

       Authors & editors: Robert Nemiroff (MTU) & Jerry Bonnell (UMCP)
            NASA Official: Phillip Newman Specific rights apply.
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                      A service of: ASD at NASA / GSFC
                             & Michigan Tech. U.



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