Using the James Webb Space Telescope, European astronomers discovered a hitherto unknown asteroid the size of the Roman Colosseum in the main asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter. Measuring between 300 and 650 feet (100 to 200 meters) in length, the asteroid is the smallest object ever observed with a telescope, the US space agency NASA said Monday.
European astronomers “accidentally detected” the asteroid, NASA said in a statement, adding that more observations would be needed to better characterize its nature and properties. “Quite unexpectedly, we detected a small asteroid,” said Thomas Muller, an astronomer at the Max Planck Institute for Extraterrestrial Physics in Germany.
It was detected during the calibration of the telescope’s MIRI (Mid-InfraRed Instrument), which operates in mid-infrared wavelengths. “Webb’s incredible sensitivity made it possible to see this roughly 100-meter object at a distance of more than 100 million kilometers,” Muller said.
Webb, which has been operational since July, is the most powerful space telescope ever built and has released a series of unprecedented data and stunning images.
One of the main goals of the $10 billion telescope is to study the life cycle of stars. Another major research focus is on exoplanets, planets outside the Earth’s solar system.
Webb was not designed to search for small objects like the newly discovered asteroid, but Muller said its discovery “suggests that many new objects will be detected by this instrument.”
