Nasa launches 12-year mission to investigate 'fossil' asteroids near Jupiter

Nasa has launched a probe into space to investigate Jupiter's Trojan asteroids, with the hope of exploring the "fossils" of the early formation of planets. The probe, named Lucy, launched from Florida on Saturday morning and will carry out a 12-year mission of eight asteroids which share an orbit around the Sun with the planet. "A true mission of discovery, Lucy is rich with opportunity to learn more about these mysterious Trojan asteroids and better understand the formation and evolution of the early solar system," said Thomas Zurbuchen, from Nasa's headquarters in Washington.