Meet 2025 MN45: The fastest-spinning asteroid ever found
Astronomers using the Vera C. Rubin Observatory just spotted 2025 MN45, an asteroid spinning at a wild pace—one full turn every 1.88 minutes!
That's the quickest spin ever recorded for any asteroid over 500 meters wide, and it's hanging out in the Main Asteroid Belt between Mars and Jupiter.
What makes this discovery cool?
The team sifted through data on nearly 2,000 new asteroids and found a few more speedsters: two others spin in under four minutes, while two more complete a turn in about 13-16 minutes.
These rapid spins suggest these rocks are solid all the way through—not loose piles of rubble.
According to scientific inference, 2025 MN45 is likely a remnant of the dense core of a larger body that was broken apart in a collision.
Can you see it yourself?
Sadly, this speedy asteroid is likely too faint for backyard telescopes.
But later this year, astronomers will get to study even more of these hard-to-spot objects when the Rubin Observatory launches its big sky survey—so stay tuned for more cosmic discoveries!