Strange "Asteroid" J002E3

[Kerbin Dallas Multipass]

J002E3 is the designation given to a supposed asteroid discovered by amateur astronomer Bill Yeung on September 3, 2002. Further examination revealed the object was not a rock asteroid but instead the S-IVB third stage of the Apollo 12 Saturn V rocket (serial S-IVB-507). http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/J002E3

Found this article so funny I thought i'd share

[bigdad84]

That's funny! It's amazing to think of all the other stuff floating out there yet too... Like a museum in space

[tavert]

I've read that wikipedia article before, but don't remember seeing that orbit simulation. That's damn cool!

[Omicron314]

Is the orbit stable? Maybe one day we can retrieve it and bring it... Somewhere, I don't know. That's not my department.

[TheCanadianVendingMachine]

Well, it IS in a Solar orbit, so maybe

[SpaceSphereOfDeath]

So earth had 2 Trojans at one point (or body at a Lagrange point)

Cool, I think that's more then mars

[Diche Bach]

How the heck did it get way out there!?

[tavert]

Originally it "ended up in a semi-stable orbit around the Earth after passing by the Moon on November 18, 1969," at some point it got ejected from the Earth-moon system probably due to another encounter close to the moon. But its solar orbit was close enough to ours that it was temporarily recaptured into another semi-stable Earth orbit a few decades later.

[SolarLiner]

So earth had 2 Trojans at one point (or body at a Lagrange point)

Cool, I think that's more then mars

Nope, Trojan asteroids are the ones at L4/L5. Here is shown L1, so nope, this isn't a Trojan object. Plus, trojans have to be in a stable orbit, and as you can see, the S-IVB is not.

That said, it is interesting how the stage was "pulled" away by L1 at the end, after being thrown by the Moon.

[PakledHostage]

I've read that wikipedia article before, but don't remember seeing that orbit simulation. That's damn cool!

Coincidentally, I still have a printout of the original JPL press release from September 20th, 2002 folded inside the front cover of my celestial mechanics textbook. The press release number was #2002-178. A quick Google search on that number returns a link to the document in the JPL archive. Anyone who's interested can find it here: http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/news.php?release=2002-178. It is an interesting read.

[Diche Bach]

Coincidentally, I still have a printout of the original JPL press release from September 20th, 2002 folded inside the front cover of my celestial mechanics textbook. The press release number was #2002-178. A quick Google search on that number returns a link to the document in the JPL archive. Anyone who's interested can find it here: http://www.jpl.nasa.gov/news/news.php?release=2002-178. It is an interesting read.

Interesting . . .

More than 100 measurements of the object's position have now been reported from more than a dozen amateur astronomers, said JPL's Dr. Steven Chesley. The two weeks of movement tracked by those observations make up about a sixth of one orbit around Earth. Scientists can extrapolate the object's path for years into the future and years into the past from that short arc. "The observations coming in are from a loosely organized network of dedicated amateur observers. Their data have been vital in determining this object's past and future paths," Chesley said.

Wow. I should make proficiency in the maths to do that one of my goals in life . . . right after I get a new job

[magnemoe]

If you drop transfer stages going to Minmus in KSP they tend to end up in solar orbit. Back in 0.18 then I started I went a lot to Minmus, on my first interplanetary trips I wondered that all the junk was.

[DisarmingBaton5]

This made me laugh. Thanks!

[tizalee]

It was funny. But at first look it seemed too much threatening. It evolved around the Earth six time and then went away. Looked as it will hit Earth or Moon at any point but luckily that was not the case.

[NGTOne]

It's not big enough to cause any damage, even if it does hit the Earth. It's a rocket stage, not a rock, and would burn up near-completely in the atmosphere. And what does it matter if it hits the Moon?

[Drunkrobot]

One day, an alien diplomatic escort will enter our solar system to make contact with us. As they make final approach, they're only going to get a glimpse of what appears to be a white and black cylinder with a bell on one end, before said cylinder hits them, and annihilates their ship.

Seriously though, it is fascinating how our recent history is literally flying over our heads. I like to think that, when we have spread throughout the Earth-Moon system, exploration and exploitation of the Moon and NEOs providing unfathomable benefits to the human race, we'll build an actual "space museum" in orbit or at the Lagrange points, housing the pioneering space vehicles that made it all happen, instead of moving them to a "graveyard orbit" or burning them up in the atmosphere, as we would've in an earlier time.

[MarkusA380]

Really fascinating!!! I like the fact it is not the only one out there, but I am worried we will ever visit this "museum"...

[magnemoe]

It's not big enough to cause any damage, even if it does hit the Earth. It's a rocket stage, not a rock, and would burn up near-completely in the atmosphere. And what does it matter if it hits the Moon?

Multiple of the Apollo 3rd stages was actually impacted on the moon during the later missions as they had put seismic detectors on moon in an previous mission.

If it hit Earth just fragments would probably hit ground anyway.

[futrtrubl]

One day, an alien diplomatic escort will enter our solar system to make contact with us. As they make final approach, they're only going to get a glimpse of what appears to be a white and black cylinder with a bell on one end, before said cylinder hits them, and annihilates their ship.

If a representative of an interstellar capably civilization isn't able to detect and avoid objects in space in an unknown area or to get in contact with the people they are visiting to get or at least approve a flight plan (and not get missiles thrown at them in panic) then it's probably for the best. Like those TSAs (Terminally Stupid Aliens) in that terrible movie Battleship (2012). You have impenetrable force-fields and interstellar capability and come expecting a fight but can't avoid (or survive) an impact with a satellite?

Edward

[Designer225]

We might be able to retrieve it in 2032... if our technology is advanced enough.

[Respawn]

hm.. one thing struck me as very odd.

why does it deflect away from L1 at the end?

I would expect it to curve slightly towards L1.

[Drunkrobot]

If a representative of an interstellar capably civilization isn't able to detect and avoid objects in space in an unknown area or to get in contact with the people they are visiting to get or at least approve a flight plan (and not get missiles thrown at them in panic) then it's probably for the best. Like those TSAs (Terminally Stupid Aliens) in that terrible movie Battleship (2012). You have impenetrable force-fields and interstellar capability and come expecting a fight but can't avoid (or survive) an impact with a satellite?

Edward

I was joking. If I was an interstellar race making contact with another civilisation, I would do my homework.

I forgive you for being mistaken. Tone of voice doesn't transmit very well through text. :l

[nhnifong]

The field around L1 looks like this. The lines are the paths that objects tend to follow. Note the two U shapes near L1

[Kryten]

Yeah, L1 is one of the unstable Lagrange points; anything not exactly at the spot tends to get 'pushed' away. It's L4 and L5 that allow stable orbits.

[Requiem762]

That's awesome