Images show asteroid 2025 MN45 surrounded by other space rocks within the main asteroid belt, which lies between Mars and Jupiter. (Photo: NSF–DOE Vera C. Rubin Observatory/NOIRLab/SLAC/AURA/P. Marenfeld)
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News1809-01-2026, 12:39

World's Largest Digital Camera Spots 'Super Rotator' Asteroid Spinning Rapidly in Space

  • The Vera C Rubin Observatory in Chile, equipped with the world's largest digital camera, discovered asteroid 2025 MN45.
  • Asteroid 2025 MN45 is half a mile wide and rotates once every 1.88 minutes, making it the fastest-spinning giant asteroid ever found.
  • The 3,200-megapixel LSST camera, installed on a high mountain in Chile, will scan the skies for 10 years, creating a time-lapse record of the universe.
  • Scientists believe the extreme spin rate of 2025 MN45 suggests a violent past or that it's a fragment of a larger planetary body.
  • The observatory is expected to identify millions of new objects, improving early detection of potential threats to Earth and understanding the solar system.

Why It Matters: World's largest digital camera unveils a 'super rotator' asteroid, revolutionizing space observation and threat detection.

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