Asteroid or Comet? Both. (IMAGE)

NASA/Goddard Space Flight Center

Asteroid or Comet? Both.

Caption

Hubble photographed a pair of asteroids orbiting each other that have a tail of dust, which is a comet-like feature. The odd object, called 2006 VW139/288P, is the first known binary asteroid that is also classified as a main-belt comet. Roughly 5,000 years ago, 2006 VW139/288P probably broke into two pieces due to a fast rotation.

Credit

NASA, ESA, and J. Agarwal (Max Planck Institute for Solar System Research)

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