HelioLinc3D finds asteroid 2022 SF289 in sparse ATLAS detections

AI system

System: HelioLinc3D (heliocentric linking algorithm for Rubin Observatory solar-system processing)
Model: Not assessed
Release: Not assessed
Application developer: University of Washington DiRAC Institute / Rubin Observatory (Ari Heinze, Siegfried Eggl, Mario Juric)
Role: Not assessed
Configuration: Not assessed
Inputs and outputs: Not assessed
Autonomy: Not assessed
Workflow: Survey detections too sparse per night for conventional linking. Heliocentric linking across multiple nights. Submission to and designation by the Minor Planet Center.
Human oversight: Not assessed
Relation to AI: HelioLinc3D linked detections from separate nights that conventional pipelines could not combine, producing the orbit that the MPC published. Caveat: UW, UH, Rubin and MPC sources call it a “next-generation algorithm”. No cited source describes it as machine learning or AI.
AI contribution: HelioLinc3D linked detections from separate nights that conventional pipelines could not combine, producing the orbit that the MPC published. Caveat: UW, UH, Rubin and MPC sources call it a “next-generation algorithm”. No cited source describes it as machine learning or AI.

Studies: Not assessed
Study design: Not assessed
Measurement: Not assessed
Setting and sample: Not assessed
Measures: about 600 feet across with an Earth MOID of 0.0015 AU
Comparison: conventional near-Earth-object discovery, which needs four observations of an object on one night
Results: Reference: ATLAS had observed 2022 SF289 three times on four separate nights, but never the requisite four times on one night to be identified as a new NEO. Result: It successfully combined fragments of data from all four nights and made the discovery.
Additional value from AI: Not assessed
Limitations: Not assessed
Denominators: Not assessed
Materials for replication: Not assessed

Participants: Developer: University of Washington DiRAC Institute / Rubin Observatory (Ari Heinze, Siegfried Eggl, Mario Juric). Operator: University of Washington DiRAC Institute, test run on ATLAS survey data.
Jurisdictions: Developer: United States. Operator: United States.
Ownership and control: Not assessed
Dependencies: Not assessed
Cross-border connections: Not assessed
Geopolitical implications: Not assessed

Conditions for replication: Astrometry from several nights must be precise enough to constrain a heliocentric orbit. The Minor Planet Center must confirm the linkage as a new object.
Replication attempts: Not assessed
Later findings: 2 April 2026. On 2 April 2026 UW and Rubin announced over 11,000 new asteroids, including 33 near-Earth objects, confirmed by the Minor Planet Center and found with DiRAC-developed discovery software built by Ari Heinze and Jacob Kurlander; the release does not use the name HelioLinc3D.
Availability: Not assessed
Institutional decision: Not assessed
Grounds: Not assessed
Action and result: Not assessed
Success criterion: Not assessed

Source numbers: AIBD-0146-source-0001–0006
Citations: Numbered references below.
Language: Not assessed
Source relationships: The Minor Planet Center publishes the observations and orbit. The University of Washington identifies HelioLinc3D as the discovery software. The circular is an astronomical record. [1] [4]
Original evidence: The Minor Planet Center publishes the observations and orbit. The University of Washington identifies HelioLinc3D as the discovery software. The circular is an astronomical record. [1] [4]
Access and versions: Not assessed
Supported findings: Not assessed
Evidence links: Not assessed
Evidence strength: Not assessed
Missing evidence: Not assessed

Assessed benefits: Organizations. Society.
Depth: Organizations: 2. Society: 2.
Reasons: Organizations: The Rubin Observatory and UW DiRAC team obtained a real-data validation of the linking software before the ten-year survey began. Society: One roughly 600-foot potentially hazardous asteroid was added to the catalog. The sources state that it poses no foreseeable risk, so the benefit is knowledge, not averted harm.
Observed or intended: Not assessed
Rubric: Not assessed
Assessor and date: Not assessed
Alternative assessments: Not assessed
Fill: Independently reported

Kind: Not assessed
Related entries: Not assessed
Field: Astronomy / planetary defense. Academic research / observatory operations.
Purpose: Built as Rubin Observatory's linking algorithm to discover moving objects, including near-Earth asteroids, from sparse multi-night detections. This benefit was that purpose.
Dates: Date basis unassessed: 2023 (precision unassessed). Updated: 25 October 2026.
Stage: Not assessed
Version: SHA-256: e5c3b3a73121…

Dataset Independent author

Minor Planet Center (2023). MPEC 2023-O26: 2022 SF289. IAU Minor Planet Electronic Circular.

Independent confirmation of the asteroid’s observations and orbit. MPEC 2023-O26, observations, observer details, orbital elements, and ephemeris.

Minor Planet Center astronomical circular.
Dataset Independent author

Minor Planet Center (2023). MPC Database entry for 2022 SF289.
Press release Deployer

University of Hawaii (2023). 'Potentially hazardous' asteroid identified through new algorithm. UH News.
Press release Developer

University of Washington (2023). New algorithm ensnares its first 'potentially hazardous' asteroid. UW News.

Attributes the sparse-observation discovery to HelioLinc3D. Discovery account and link to MPEC 2023-O26.

The developer’s original announcement; distinct from the MPC orbit record.
Press release Developer

Rubin Observatory (2023). New Algorithm Developed for Rubin Ensnares its First Asteroid.
Press release Developer

University of Washington (2026). Early data from Rubin Observatory reveals over 11,000 new asteroids. UW News, 2 April 2026.