Page 28 - ARUBA TODAY

A28 SCIENCE
Tuesday 22 May 2018
Jupiter's backward-flying asteroid from another star system

By MARCIA DUNN, Nice, France. "BZ is not. It is
AP Aerospace Writer a bona fide immigrant and
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. the notion of immigration is
(AP) — Just months after a hot topic nowadays all
the discovery of our first over the world!"
known interstellar visitor, it Namouni said stars were
turns out there's another as- closer back when our so-
teroid from yet another star lar system was forming,
system residing in our cos- and asteroids were zipping
mic club in plain view. around between star sys-
Scientists reported Monday tems. It's extremely unlikely
that this interstellar resident — "practically zero" — that
is an asteroid sharing Jupi- BZ came from the same
ter's orbit but circling in the star system as Oumuamua,
opposite direction. he noted in an email.
The asteroid, known as He expects lots more in-
2015 BZ509, has been in this terstellar immigrants in our
peculiar backward orbit backyard.
around the sun ever since "There is no reason why
getting sucked into our so- there shouldn't be more
lar system, the researchers masquerading as solar sys-
said. About 2 miles (3 kilo- tem asteroids like BZ did so
meters) across, it joined our far," Namouni wrote. He
neighborhood in the first said the area just beyond
moments after our solar sys- Neptune, the farthest plan-
tem formed 4.5 billion years et in our solar system, might
ago. be teeming with extrasolar
The French and Brazilian re- asteroids — or exo aster-
searchers base their finding oids — like BZ.
on extensive computer sim- It's extremely unlikely —
ulations showing BZ always "practically zero" — that BZ
has orbited around the sun came from the same star
in reverse and thus harkens system as Oumuamua, ac-
back to the beginning of cording to Namouni.
our solar system. FILE - This April 3, 2017 file image made available by NASA shows the planet Jupiter when it was Co-author Helena Morais
The results, published in the at a distance of about 668 million kilometers (415 million miles) from Earth. of Sao Paulo State Univer-
journal Royal Astronomi- sity in Brazil said she was
cal Society , come several cigar-shaped asteroid that waiian for messenger from a tourist passing by our so- surprised by the finding,
months after the discov- zoomed by last fall. afar arriving first, or scout. lar system," said lead au- but noted "that's part of the
ery of our first known in- That passer-by rock was "Oumuamua is of interstel- thor Fathi Namouni of the fun" of science.
terstellar visitor, a smaller, named Oumuamua, Ha- lar origin but it is also only University of Cote d'Azur in q

NASA shipper Orbital ATK

launches space station supplies

By MARCIA DUNN troller wished the Cygnus stellation, the Cygnus is
AP Aerospace Writer capsule "a smooth trip" on making Orbital ATK's ninth
CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. the rest of its journey. contracted delivery for
(AP) — One of NASA's "Very exciting morning. NASA. SpaceX is NASA's
prime shippers, Orbital ATK, Earth's newest spacecraft other supplier.
launched a fresh load of launched this morning in This particular Cygnus is
supplies to the International a column of fire and roar," called the S.S. J.R. Thomp-
Space Station from Virginia NASA's space program son in honor of the former
on Monday. manager, Kirk Shireman, NASA and Orbital ATK ex-
In this photo made from NASA video, the Orbital/ATK Cygnus The Antares rocket blasted said from Houston. ecutive, who died in No-
CRS-9 sits on top of an Antares rocket as it launches from NASA's
Wallops Flight Facility, Monday morning, May 21, 2018, in Vir- off from Wallops Island be- The Cygnus holds a stu- vember. Launch controllers
ginia. fore dawn, treating early dent cement-mixing ex- wore dark suits, white shirts
risers along the East Coast periment, as well as an and red ties in memory of
to a cosmic light show, atom-cooling chamber Thompson, who dressed
at least where skies were from NASA's Jet Propulsion that way on the job.
clear. The area of visibility Laboratory that uses lasers The space station is cur-
stretched from New Eng- to get temperatures cold- rently home to three Ameri-
land to the Carolinas, and er than even space itself. cans, two Russians and
as far inland as Pittsburgh There's also equipment for one Japanese. Three of
and Charlotte. a spacewalk next month, them will return to Earth at
The 7,400-pound shipment as well as computers and the beginning of June, fol-
— a third of it research — groceries for the six station lowed by the launch of
should reach the orbiting astronauts. three new crew members
lab Thursday. A flight con- Named for the swan con- from Kazakhstan.q