Mud69 is a recently discovered small body in the outer solar system that may be related to the origin of life on Earth. It was found by astronomers using the Hubble Space Telescope and is thought to be a primitive, icy world similar to comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko.
Mu69 is about 6.5 billion kilometers (4 billion miles) from the Sun, making it one of the most distant objects ever observed by humankind. It orbits in an elongated path that takes it far beyond Neptune’s orbit before swinging back closer to the Sun. Mu69 will make its closest approach to Earth on January 1, 2019, at a distance of about 35 million kilometers (22 million miles).
This tiny world is believed to be a remnant from the early solar system, and may provide clues about how our own planet formed and evolved over time. Mud69 is also an intriguing target for future exploration, as it could hold evidence of prebiotic chemistry – the building blocks of life – or even signs of extraterrestrial life.