CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — NASA's Lucy spacecraft has just sent back incredible images from its latest encounter with an asteroid that looks like a lumpy bowling pin! These stunning snapshots give us a glimpse of this bizarre celestial body, which could change our understanding of space.

Just a day after its close approach, NASA unveiled the images, marking an exciting rehearsal for even more crucial missions to come near Jupiter. This asteroid, humorously named Donaldjohanson, is larger than scientists expected, stretching about 5 miles (8 kilometers) long and 2 miles (3.5 kilometers) wide, making it so elongated that the spacecraft couldn't capture it all in one frame.

The recent flyby, which took Lucy within 600 miles (960 kilometers) of Donaldjohanson, was conducted in the main asteroid belt, a region between Mars and Jupiter. This asteroid bears the name of the famed paleontologist who discovered the fossil 'Lucy' 50 years ago in Ethiopia, highlighting our ongoing journey to connect science with history.

As Lucy continues to send back data in the days to come, scientists anticipate a clearer picture of this peculiar asteroid's shape, which could unlock new secrets about our solar system.

Launched in 2021, Lucy's mission aims to explore the uncharted Trojan asteroids that orbit near Jupiter, with eight exciting flybys planned through 2033. Stay tuned as we follow Lucy's groundbreaking journey and uncover the mysteries of the cosmos!