{"id":573535,"date":"2026-08-03T15:43:11","date_gmt":"2026-08-03T15:43:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/573535\/"},"modified":"2026-08-03T15:43:11","modified_gmt":"2026-08-03T15:43:11","slug":"the-1st-three-headed-asteroid-photo-of-the-day-for-aug-3-2026","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/573535\/","title":{"rendered":"The 1st ‘three-headed’ asteroid photo of the day for Aug. 3, 2026"},"content":{"rendered":"

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A collage of images of asteroid (44) Nysa, believed to be the first-known asteroid in our solar system to have a “trilobate” or three-headed shape. (Image credit: ESO\/K. Minker et al.)<\/p>\n

New images reveal what astronomers believe is the first-known “trilobate” or three-headed asteroid in our solar system.<\/p>\n

What is it?<\/p>\n

These new images capture the asteroid<\/a> known as (44) Nysa, or just Nysa, as it spins through the main asteroid belt<\/a> located between Mars and Jupiter. The images were captured with the Very Large Telescope in Chile and the Large Binocular Telescope in Arizona.<\/p>\n

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Nysa was first observed in 1857, but it wasn’t until the new images were captured when scientists were able to resolve its unique three-headed structure. The asteroid appears to be around 47 miles (75 kilometers) in circumference at its widest point, with two narrow “necks” that give it its odd “trilobate” shape.<\/p>\n

Even more incredible, astronomers were also able to resolve that a 0.6-mile-wide (1-km-wide) moon<\/a> seems to orbit Nysa. The tiny moon, currently known as S\/2026 (44) 1, appears to orbit the asteroid at a distance of around 106 miles (170 km).<\/p>\n

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An image of the three-headed asteroid (44) Nysa and its small moon S\/2026 (44) 1, identified here by a pink arrow. The image was produced by the Large Binocular Telescope in Arizona. (Image credit: Kate Minker et al.)Why is it incredible?<\/p>\n

Astronomers say these images reveal (44) Nysa to be unlike any other asteroid we’ve seen in our neck of the cosmic woods.<\/p>\n

You may like<\/p>\n

“The images reveal a remarkably unusual object,” said Kate Minker of Arizona’s Lowell Observatory in a statement<\/a> announcing the discovery. “The most likely explanation is that Nysa is either a contact trinary, consisting of three connected components, or an extremely irregular coherent body unlike anything we’ve previously observed.”<\/p>\n

Scientists can study asteroids like Nysa to learn about how the planets of our solar system<\/a> formed. Nysa belongs to a class of asteroids believed to have formed closer to the inner solar system and therefore may have a similar composition to the building blocks that would go on to form the inner planets.<\/p>\n

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