Selenophiles unite. Something very cool is coming. Not sure what a selenophile is? No problem, it just means someone who loves the moon, and those who do are in for a treat. According to Space.com, Earth will get a second moon for about two months when a small asteroid begins to orbit the planet. This mini-moon will be around from September 29 to November 25.
Videos by InspireMore
An Expert Gave A Detailed Mini-Moon Explanation
Universidad Complutense de Madrid professor Carlos de la Fuente Marcos explained the mini-moon to Space.com.
“The object that is going to pay us a visit belongs to the Arjuna asteroid belt, a secondary asteroid belt made of space rocks that follow orbits very similar to that of Earth at an average distance to the sun of about 93 million miles (150 million kilometers). Objects in the Arjuna asteroid belt are part of the near-Earth object population of asteroids and comets.”
We won’t be able to see it with the naked eye on Earth, but Carlos said it will be a pretty spectacular sight with the proper equipment.
“You may say that if a true satellite is like a customer buying goods inside a store, objects like 2024 PT5 are window shoppers.
BREAKING 🚨: Earth will temporarily have a mini-moon for two months
— Latest in space (@latestinspace) September 18, 2024
On Sept. 29 an asteroid known as a ‘mini-moon’ is expected to make a single orbit around Earth and leave on Nov. 25th pic.twitter.com/JYEWXbdqXv
The latest in Space posted about the mini-moon on X and some people are excited.
Like this person, “Awww…Could Earth adopt it? So cute!”
And this one. “Oh sweet heaven! An early birthday present for me.”
There were plenty of questions. “Really? Is there a more in-depth explanation, and can telescopes see it?”
Scientist Chetan G had an answer. “The asteroid will be gravitationally bound to Earth for about 53 days, during which it will not complete a full orbit around the planet. This phenomenon is classified as a temporarily captured flyby. Due to its small size and low brightness (absolute magnitude of approximately 27.593), it will be challenging to observe with standard telescopes. A telescope with a diameter of at least 30 inches will be necessary for professional astronomers to detect it. After its brief stay, 2024 PT5 is expected to return to its heliocentric orbit and may approach Earth again in January 2025 and 2055.”
You can find the source of this story’s featured image here.
Want to be happier in just 5 minutes a day? Sign up for Morning Smile and join over 455,000+ people who start each day with good news.
