Janice R. Andrews
This year, Earth will have a “mini-moon” in addition to its normal moon for a short time. As of September 29, asteroid 2024 PT5 will be pulled into orbit around Earth. It will stay there until November 25. Even though it’s not really a second moon, 2024 PT5 is an asteroid from the Arjuna belt that will circle Earth in a horseshoe form.
This asteroid was found on August 7, 2024. Its short-term path around Earth is called a “flyby” because it won’t make a full spin. A study in Research Notes of the American Astronomical Society says that this kind of thing happens when space junk gets caught in Earth’s gravity. Earth has caught similar asteroids in the past, including a mini-moon in 1981 and another one in 2022. These events are rare, but not always the case.
Even though it has a lot to do with the stars, 2024 PT5 will be hard to find. Carlos de la Fuente Marcos, who led the study, said that regular telescopes and glasses can’t see the object because it is too small and dim. Astronomers with more powerful tools, on the other hand, will be able to see it.
It’s interesting that Paul Chodas from NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory thinks this rock might have come from Earth’s moon. Most people who look at the stars might miss this temporary mini-moon, but it shows how interesting and changing the interactions are between Earth and close space objects.
