An Asteroid Will Become Earth’s ‘Mini-Moon’ for Two Months

Starting astatine the extremity of September, Earth volition person 2 moons, but don’t get excessively utilized to it. The concern is going to past little than 2 months, and it’s improbable you’ll beryllium capable to really spot this transient 2nd moon.

The mini-moon volition really beryllium a tiny asteroid, named 2024 PT5, that was discovered connected August 7 by the Asteroid Terrestrial-Impact Last Alert System (ATLAS). The entity is connected a trajectory successful which it volition beryllium temporarily caught by Earth’s gravity. According to calculations made by Carlos and Raúl de la Fuente Marcos, some researchers astatine Spain’s Universidad Complutense de Madrid, the asteroid volition orbit the Earth from September 29 until November 25. It volition implicit conscionable 1 orbit implicit that clip earlier careening away.

2024 PT5 is precise tiny, measuring conscionable 33 feet (10 meters) wide, truthful don’t expect to spot it with the bare eye. Even those of you equipped with backyard telescopes astir apt won’t get a glimpse, arsenic the asteroid volition astatine champion person a comparatively dim magnitude worth of 22, according to EarthSky (objects go disposable to the unaided oculus astatine magnitudes of 6 oregon lower)

In the paper published successful Research Notes of the AAS, the brace wrote that the dual-moon script is uncommon for our satellite but not unheard of. A akin happening happened successful July 2006, erstwhile a mini-moon hung astir Earth for astir a year. Another orbited the satellite for respective years, earlier escaping Earth’s gravitational propulsion successful May 2020. Other objects tin sometimes get pulled by Earth’s gravity but flight earlier completing a azygous afloat orbit astir the planet. In 2020, scientists said they discovered what they believed was a mini-moon, but the information was inconclusive.

As the duo wrote successful their paper, the asteroid could person originated successful the Arjuna asteroid belt—a postulation of near-Earth objects that person orbits akin to our planet’s. “The entity is improbable to beryllium artificial arsenic its short-term dynamical improvement intimately resembles that of 2022 NX1,” different asteroid that became a mini-moon successful 1981, and again successful 2022, the brace wrote.

Amateur astronomer Tony Dunn posted a simulation of the asteroid’s way connected X, which is illuminating.

Newly-discovered #asteroid 2024 PT5 is astir to acquisition a "mini-moon event" erstwhile its geocentric vigor becomes antagonistic from September 29 – November 25.https://t.co/sAo1qSRu3J pic.twitter.com/pVYAmSbkCF

— Tony Dunn (@tony873004) September 10, 2024

If you miss 2024 PT5 this clip around, you’ll person different accidental to drawback it (well, astatine slightest drawback its vibes—again, you won’t beryllium capable to spot it). The astronomers calculated it volition alert past Earth again connected January 9, 2025. After that, it won’t beryllium adjacent again until 2055.