Earth is set to have a new moon soon as an asteroid on its way towards us will become trapped in orbit. The 33-foot-wide asteroid named 2024 PT5 will begin orbiting the Earth from September 29 until November 25. NASA identified this asteroid using its Asteroid Terrestrial-Impact Last Alert System (ATLAS) on August 7. When it enters orbit, the asteroid will be visible through telescopes. Small asteroids like this one get caught in the Earth’s gravitational field when they come within 28 million miles of the planet.
Researchers from the Complutense University of Madrid have predicted that PT5 will start circling the Earth based on its trajectory analysis. Paul Chodas, the director of the Center for Near Earth Object Studies at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), suggested that 2024 PT5 could potentially be a fragment from a lunar impact, rather than a brand new moon. If PT5 completes a full orbit around Earth, it will be classified as a mini-moon. These mini-moons are small asteroids or natural objects temporarily captured by Earth’s gravity, forming an orbit around the planet.
Unlike the Earth’s main moon, mini-moons are typically smaller and spend shorter durations in orbit. These objects, usually a few meters in diameter, are rare and challenging to detect due to their size. One example of a mini-moon is 2020 CD3, which orbited Earth from 2018 to 2020 before leaving its orbit. The upcoming presence of 2024 PT5 as a mini-moon offers a fascinating astronomical event for observers and researchers alike.
Excitement is building among the scientific community as Earth prepares to welcome a new satellite, albeit a temporary one, into its orbit. The concept of mini-moons provides a glimpse into the intricate dance of celestial bodies around our planet and opens up possibilities for studying these transient phenomena further. As astronomers gear up to observe 2024 PT5 during its stint as a mini-moon, the skies above offer a captivating display of nature’s wonders.