Lucy spacecraft eyeballs next target in exciting new images

The Lucy spacecraft, en route to the Trojan asteroids around Jupiter, first has its sights set on a main-belt asteroid, Donaldjohanson. NASA shared this view of the targeted asteroid on February 25, 2025. Image via NASA/ Goddard/ SwRI/ Johns Hopkins APL.

Lucy sees its next target

The Lucy spacecraft – named for a famous fossilized skeleton found in Africa in 1974 – is on a 4-billion-mile (6-billion-km) journey to explore a couple main-belt asteroids and seven of Jupiter’s Trojan asteroids. And now it has the main-belt asteroid Donaldjohanson in sight. On February 25, 2025, NASA shared Lucy’s view of Donaldjohanson. In the images, we can see the asteroid change its position between February 20 and 22.

Lucy will pass asteroid Donaldjohanson on April 20. It’s a test run for its encounter with Jupiter’s Trojan asteroids in 2027. Donaldjohanson is about 2 miles (3.2 km) wide. Lucy will get within 596 miles (960 km) of the asteroid. Lucy already passed and imaged another main-belt asteroid – Dinkinesh – in November 2023. During that pass, images reveled it has a contact-binary moon, Selam. Who knows what images of Donaldjohanson will reveal?

Earth gave the Lucy spacecraft a boost

Lucy launched from Cape Canaveral, Florida, on October 16, 2021. Exactly one year later, the spacecraft swung past Earth for a gravity assist on Sunday, October 16, 2022. During the 2022 gravity assist, Lucy swept within 219 miles (352 km) of Earth’s surface. In fact, Lucy came so close to Earth that some lucky observers were able to watch the spacecraft soar overhead.

It was the first of three gravity assists from Earth, as the spacecraft winds its way outward through the solar system on its 12-year journey.

Why visit the Trojan asteroids?

Notably, the Trojans move in Jupiter’s orbit around the sun. And, since they’ve never been explored before, scientists view them as fossils left over from the formation of the solar system.

With this in mind, our fossilized ancestor called Lucy dates to some 3.2 million years ago. And the skeleton of the fossil Lucy provided unique insight into human evolution. Likewise, the Lucy space mission will hopefully provide insight into our solar system’s evolution. Astronomer Hal Levison of the Southwest Research Institute (SwRI) in Boulder, Colorado, leads the Lucy mission. He spoke about Lucy’s journey to Jupiter’s Trojans and about how the mission got its name:

The Trojan asteroids are leftovers from the early days of our solar system, effectively fossils of the planet formation process. They hold vital clues to deciphering the history of our solar system. The Lucy spacecraft, like the human ancestor fossil for which it is named, will revolutionize the understanding of our origins.

Meanwhile, the asteroid Donaldjohnanson is named for anthropologist Donald Johanson. He discovered the fossilized skeleton of Lucy in Africa.

The Lucy spacecraft’s long journey

Ultimately, Lucy’s 4-billion-mile journey will take it out to the orbit of Jupiter and the realm of Trojan asteroids, then back in toward Earth for gravity assists three times. Indeed, this will be the first time a spacecraft has ever returned to Earth’s vicinity from the outer solar system.

Lucy spacecraft: Yellow arc cuts across night sky, brightening it. — View at EarthSky Community Photos. | Greg Diesel Walck in Ormond Beach, Florida, captured this photo of the launch of the Lucy spacecraft on October 16, 2021. Thank you, Greg!

To answer some questions: the Lucy spacecraft is going out to several asteroids that share a very stable orbit around the Sun with the planet Jupiter. These asteroids are not coming to Earth! Follow @AsteroidWatch
for more about how we track asteroids near Earth.

— NASA Solar System (@NASASolarSystem) October 16, 2021

Diagram showing the inner solar system, asteroid belt and Jupiter and its orbit, with locations of Trojan asteroids indicated. — The white “donut” represents the asteroid belt. Generally speaking, astronomers use the name Trojans for all the asteroids collected at Jupiter’s 2 stable Lagrange points. Specifically, the asteroids move in Jupiter’s orbit, 60 degrees ahead of and behind the giant planet. By convention, asteroids orbiting in front of Jupiter are named for the Greek heroes of the Trojan War. And likewise, asteroids trailing behind Jupiter are named for the Trojan heroes. Image via Wikimedia Commons.

The Lucy spacecraft target: Trojan asteroids

To be sure, Trojan asteroids are a unique group of rocky bodies. Left over from the formation of the solar system, they orbit the sun on either side of Jupiter. Until now, no spacecraft has previously explored this collection of solar system fossils. Jupiter’s gravity, in effect, traps these asteroids in two swarms in its orbit, with some ahead of the planet and some trailing behind.

Given these points, deputy principal investigator Cathy Olkin said:

Lucy’s ability to fly by so many targets means that we will not only get the first up-close look at this unexplored population, but we will also be able to study why these asteroids appear so different. The mission will provide an unparalleled glimpse into the formation of our solar system, helping us understand the evolution of the planetary system as a whole.

Lucy spacecraft with two large solar panels in front of large rocky object. — Artist’s concept showing the Lucy spacecraft exploring a Trojan asteroid. Image via SwRI.

Bottom line: The Lucy spacecraft is on its way to Jupiter’s Trojan asteroids. But on its way, it will have a rendezvous with the main-belt asteroid Donaldjohanson. See the first image of Donaldjohanson here.

Kelly Kizer Whitt

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About the Author:

Kelly Kizer Whitt – EarthSky’s nature and travel vlogger on YouTube – writes and edits some of the most fascinating stories at EarthSky.org. She’s been writing about science, with a focus on astronomy, for decades. She began her career at Astronomy Magazine and made regular contributions to other outlets, including AstronomyToday and the Sierra Club. She has nine published books, including a children’s picture book, Solar System Forecast, and a young adult dystopian novel, A Different Sky.

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