- By Ashita Singh
- Wed, 25 Aug 2021 11:01 AM (IST)
- Source:JND
An asteroid found recently zips around sun, is the fastest asteriod known to human kind till now. This big rock in the space is called 2021 PH27, finishes its each lap around the star in 113 Earth days. This is the shortest orbital time period for any of the known object in the solar system however, there's an exception for planet Mercury which only takes 88 Earth days for it's single lap.
2021 PH27 travels more on the elliptical path than Mercury and hence it is considered more closer to the sun. In comparison 2021 PH27 covers about 12.4 million miles (20 million kilometers) but about 29 million miles (47 million km) is covered by Mercury.
Astronomers discoverd the space rock on August 13, while collecting images from the Víctor M. Blanco 4-meter Telescope at Cerro Tololo Inter-American Observatory in Chile. The rock is estimated to be about 0.6 miles (1km) wide. 2021 PH27 likely got originated in the main asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter, later being displaced in the inward gravitational interactions with one or other planet.
The team of astronomers spotted and were able to pin down the asteroid's orbit belt in the next few days due to the observations of DEC and the Magellan Telescopes at the Las Campanas Observatory in Chile, as well as smaller scopes in Chile and South Africa operated by the Las Cumbres Observatory.
"Though telescope time for astronomers is very precious, the international nature and love of the unknown make astronomers very willing to override their own science and observations to follow up new, interesting discoveries like this," said discovery team leader Scott Sheppard, an astronomer at the Carnegie Institution for Science in Washington, D.C.
Having a slightly tilted orbital path by 32 degrees suggests that 2021 PH27might instead be an extinct comet that was born in the far outer solar system, then captured into a closer orbit after passing by Mars, Earth or another rocky planet. However, only further observations can help resolve this enigma.In the latest developements, the 2021 PH27 is moving behind the sun from our point of view, and it won't re-emerge until early 2022.
