Earth is playing around with a new natural satellite, about to observe its second “mini-moon” in 57 days.
Our relationship with the Moon has been going for about 4.6 billion years, so it shouldn’t feel too threatening.
But this newcomer, an asteroid due to be “captured” by Earth’s gravity on September 29th, is attracting attention because it’s a rare event that gives us a new space rock companion.
2024 The asteroid, called PT5, is only 10 meters long, making it a tiny speck compared to the Moon itself.
After 56.6 days, it should make a short circular motion before orbiting Earth on November 25th. Back in space.
The new little friend was reported in a research note from the American Astronomical Society. The report said that near-Earth objects (NEOs) that approach at close range can “experience a mini-moon phenomenon in which their geocentric energy becomes negative for hours, days, or months.”
Sometimes, they even begin to orbit Earth for a short period of time, as happened with the Bonus Moon from July 2006 to July 2007.
The moon that arrives this month is not expected to make a full circle around Earth, so debate continues about whether it is really a mini-moon.
In a further twist, the asteroid may have even originally been part of our moon.
Paul Chodas, director of the Center for Near-Earth Object Studies at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, told The New York Times that past movements suggest “it could be an ejecta from an impact on the moon.”
The leading theory about the formation of the Moon is that it was once part of Earth, until a “giant impact” with another small planet blew off a big chunk.
If you think about it this way, the arrival of PT5 in 2024 could be like a little family reunion.
Unfortunately, the asteroid is too small to see with the naked eye, so we’ll have to rely on cutting-edge telescopes to catch a glimpse of it.
But he’s predicted to visit again in 2055, when we might be able to see him on our smartphones or AR glasses.