Editing Surveyor 2 (section)

==Centaur upper stage==
{{Main|2020 SO}}
[[File:Animation of 2020 SO around Earth.gif|thumb|Animation of 2020 SO around Earth]]
The [[Centaur (rocket stage)|Centaur]] upper stage of the rocket used to launch Surveyor continued on its original trajectory past the Moon, placing it into a solar orbit similar to that of the Earth. The Centaur was untracked from that point forward. In August 2020, NASA announced the sighting of an object in a solar orbit which could shortly make a close pass with the Earth.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://ssd.jpl.nasa.gov/sbdb.cgi?sstr=2020%20SO;old=0;orb=0;cov=0;log=0;cad=1#cad|title=JPL Small-Body Database Browser}}</ref> On September 23, 2020, NASA announced that this was likely the lost Centaur booster, and likely to be re-captured into Earth orbit. This would be the second time that a rocket upper stage has done so, after [[J002E3|the upper stage of a Saturn V rocket]] from the [[Apollo 12]] launch re-entered Earth orbit in 2002.<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.space.com/earth-minimoon-2020-so-may-be-vintage-space-junk|title=Earth may get a new minimoon — but it may just be 1960s space junk|author=Meghan Bartels|date=September 23, 2020|website=Space.com}}</ref> In December 2020, NASA confirmed that it was the lost Centaur stage.<ref name="NASA-20201202">{{cite web|title=New Data Confirm 2020 SO to be the Upper Centaur Rocket Booster from the 1960's|url=https://www.nasa.gov/feature/new-data-confirm-2020-so-to-be-the-upper-centaur-rocket-booster-from-the-1960-s|publisher=NASA|date=2 December 2020|access-date=2 December 2020}}</ref>

{{Commons category}}