This Easter Sunday, the astronomy community wasn't just celebrating; they were witnessing a cosmic milestone! NASA's Lucy spacecraft reached a thrilling moment as it flew past the asteroid Donaldjohanson, capturing the world's attention with its groundbreaking mission.

Set to have its close encounter at 1:51 p.m. EDT on April 20, 2025, the Lucy probe is on an astonishing 12-year journey that will take it to the orbit of Jupiter. Along the way, Lucy aims to investigate eight Trojan asteroids to unravel the mysteries of our solar system's origins and the elements that could ignite life.

Before venturing into the depths of space, Lucy is conducting a series of dress rehearsals. Its first test drive came on November 1, 2023, with a flyby of the asteroid Dinkinesh, and now it's time for the highly anticipated pass of Donaldjohanson. This encounter will take place at a distance of approximately 620 miles (1,000 kilometers)—a remarkable feat that will allow Lucy to put its scientific instruments to the test.

Equipped with cutting-edge tools like L'Ralph, a color camera and infrared imaging spectrometer, and L'LLORI, the high-resolution Lucy Long Range Reconnaissance Imager, Lucy is ready to analyze the asteroid's composition. L'TES, the far-infrared Lucy Thermal Emission Spectrometer, will also play a key role in understanding this celestial neighbor.

“We’re observing Donaldjohanson as if it were one of the Trojan asteroids,” explains Arizona State University professor Phil Christensen, the mastermind behind L'TES. This rehearsal aims to ensure the mission is fully prepared for its critical encounters in the future.

The connection between Lucy and Donaldjohanson runs deep, rooted in evolutionary history. The mission was named after the remarkably well-preserved fossil skeleton discovered by paleoanthropologist Donald Johanson in 1974. Johanson, who now leads the Institute of Human Origins at ASU, reflected on this connection during a recent interview.

Christensen took the opportunity to pose a fun question to Johanson: if a secondary asteroid were to be found during the flyby, what name would he choose? Johanson mused, "Oh, I’m going to have to give that some real thought!" A hint of excitement danced in his voice, matching the awe of a universe brimming with discoveries waiting to be made.

Join us as we continue to follow Lucy's incredible journey, revealing secrets of the asteroids that may hold the keys to understanding life itself!