'Weirdo' asteroid offers new insight into chaotic solar system

A ‘weirdo’ asteroid spotted 4 billion kilometres from Earth has thrown new light on the earliest days of our solar system.

Astronomers believe the carbon-rich asteroid – known as 2004 EW95 – was ejected into the icy Kuiper Belt in the outer parts of the solar system.

But that was after it was formed in the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter, the European Southern Observatory (ESO) said.

The 300km-long asteroid was discovered by astronomer Dr Wesley Fraser, of Queen’s University Belfast, in Northern Ireland.

He was conducting routine observations using the Hubble Space Telescope when he noticed an unusual pattern of light from 2004 EW95.

“It looked enough of a weirdo for us to take a closer look,” Dr Tom Seccull, lead author of the study said.

Data from the ESO helped the scientists decide it was formed from carbon - pointing to the inner solar system as its origin point.

The discovery shines a new light on the chaos state when our solar system was born.

Astronomers have long theorised how objects were flung from the inner solar system to far away orbits.

They believe as gas-rich planets such as Jupiter and Saturn moved through the solar system, they spat out small rocky object such as 2004 EW95

After being ejected from their places of origin they ended up in the outer solar system.

“Given 2004 EW95’s present-day abode in the icy outer reaches of the solar system, this implies that it has been flung out into its present orbit by a migratory planet in the early days of the solar system,” said Dr Seccull.