NASA HST image of a comet-like object called P/2010 A2, which was first discovered by the LINEAR program sky survey. The object appears so unusual in ground-based telescopic images that discretionary time on Hubble was used to take a close-up look. This image, from the January 29 observation, shows a bizarre X-pattern of filamentary structures near the point-like nucleus of the object and trailing streamers of dust. A closer look shows a complex structure that suggests the object is not a comet but instead the product of a head-on collision between two asteroids traveling five times faster than a rifle bullet. Astronomers have long thought that the asteroid belt is being ground down through collisions, but such a smashup has never before been seen. An impact origin would also be consistent with the absence of gas in spectra recorded using ground-based telescopes. At the time of the Hubble observations, the object was approximately 180 million miles from the Sun and 90 million miles from Earth. The Hubble images were recorded with the WFC3 camera, taken in visible light, with a blue color map was added to bring out details.