NASA published new photos of the "Halloween asteroid"

The "Halloween asteroid", also known as 2015 TB145, flew at a safe distance from the Earth on October 31, but before it disappeared into the darkness of space, astronomers managed to take a couple of photos as a keepsake.

The asteroid, which is most likely a dead comet, received the nickname "Creepy" and, as if specifically for Halloween, resembled from some angles a skull. Nevertheless, in the new photos, he no longer looks so creepy. The asteroid even managed to get a second nickname - “Big Pumpkin”.

“The radar images of the asteroid 2015 TB145 show new areas of its surface that were previously invisible. We can see pronounced hollows, bright spots that can be boulders, and other objects of complex shape, "says Lance Benner, lead NASA project manager for asteroids radar research. "The images are very different from the photographs taken by Arebas observatory in Arecibo on October 30 - probably as a result of another angle, under which we were presented with an asteroid making one revolution in three hours."

Recall that astronomers were able to detect the "Halloween asteroid" just three weeks before its flight past Earth. Scientists hope that new data and photos of the asteroid will help us to find out more about this unexpected guest and his possible friends who can still come to us for a light.

Asteroid 2015 TB145 will visit Earth again in 2018, but it will fly much further. At the moment of closest approach, it will be located 38 million kilometers from us. For comparison: October 31, he flew just 500 thousand kilometers from the surface of the Earth.

The article is based on materials https://hi-news.ru/eto-interesno/nasa-opublikovalo-novye-fotografii-xellouinskogo-asteroida.html.