All you need to know about Earth's mini-moon for 53 days

Earth is about to gain a temporary "mini-moon" in the form of asteroid 2024 PT5, marking a rare celestial event. This mini-moon will be captured by Earth's gravity from September 29 to November 25, 2024. Discovered on August 7, 2024, the asteroid measures around 10 meters (33 feet) in diameter. While it's under Earth's gravitational pull for about two months, it will loop around the planet but won’t complete a full orbit before returning to its usual path around the Sun.

This phenomenon is a result of near-Earth objects (NEOs), like 2024 PT5, which travel in orbits close to Earth's. Their proximity and relatively low speed can cause them to be temporarily influenced by Earth's gravity. A paper published by the American Astronomical Society explains that these mini-moon events happen when NEOs come close to Earth and follow a "horseshoe" path, where they stay bound by Earth's gravity for days, weeks, or even months without fully orbiting the planet.

However, 2024 PT5 will be too dim to see with the naked eye or even most amateur telescopes. Its magnitude of 22 means only advanced observatories will be able to track it. Despite this, the event offers valuable insights into the behavior of near-Earth objects and how Earth's gravity can influence their movement.

This is not the first time Earth has experienced a mini-moon. Another asteroid, 2022 NX1, was briefly captured in 1981 and again in 2022. These mini-moons are of interest for asteroid mining and space exploration, as they are easier to reach and could serve as potential targets for future missions.

Though asteroid 2024 PT5’s stay will be brief, it provides astronomers with a unique opportunity to study the dynamics of Earth's gravitational influence on nearby celestial bodies.

 

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