warning System for dangerous approach of the Earth with asteroids, ATLAS has discovered the first Trojan asteroid, which has a cometary tail. About the discovery of a new species of celestial bodies in the Solar system, according to a press release on Phys.org.
In early June, 2019 specialists working in the project ATLAS, recorded the LD2 2019 asteroid near the orbit of Jupiter. Subsequent observations confirmed the object the signs of comets, including the dust tail. In late 2019 and early 2020, the asteroid passed behind the Sun, and in April 2020, he reappeared in the night sky, still retaining the cometary activity.
Since the asteroid is a Trojan, it travels on the same orbit, and Jupiter, being at the same distance from the planet in the Lagrange point. LD2 is ahead of Jupiter in the composition of the cloud of asteroids, where there are hundreds of thousands of celestial bodies. most of the Trojans were captured in this area billions of years ago, and any surface ice long disappeared. However, under the surface ice could be preserved, and LD2 is proof of this.
the Asteroid-comet, however, could be captured by Jupiter recently. According to another version, cometary properties manifested by a landslide or collision with another asteroid, which exposed subsurface ice that began to evaporate. The new observations should help to determine the exact nature of the object.
