By Qwynz Bonachita || Photo Credit: ANDRZEJ WOJCICKI/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY

Earth is set to experience a rare celestial event starting today as it temporarily welcomes a mini-moon. On August 7, NASA-funded scientists identified an asteroid and named it asteroid 2024 PT5. This small asteroid is about 33 feet long and hails from the Arjuna asteroid belt, which is about 93 million miles away from our planet.

The asteroid will enter its two-month Earth orbit on September 29, 2024 until November 25, 2024. But, unlike Earth’s moon, mini-moons like 2024 PT5 have unstable orbits. Scientists predict that asteroid 2024 PT5 may not be able to complete one revolution around the planet but will follow a horseshoe-like path instead.

Despite the mini-moon being close to our planet for several months, it is unlikely for it to be visible to the naked eye or even through typical amateur telescopes or binoculars, due to its small size. To witness this mini-moon, a professional telescope with a minimum diameter of 30 inches will be required, says Carlos de la Fuente Marcos, the study’s lead author and a professor of the Universidad Complutense de Madrid.

Another interesting possibility is that 2024 PT5 may not just be any asteroid, but rather a fragment of our moon. Paul Chodas, director of NASA’s Center for Near Earth Object Studies, pointed out that the trajectory of the asteroid suggests that it may be a lunar debris that was expelled off the moon as a result of a prior impact incident.

PT5 is expected to go back to the Arjuna asteroid belt after a short orbit around the Earth in 2024, however there is still a possibility of it re-entering Earth’s orbit in 2055.

Reference:
Johnson, A. (2024, September 19). Temporary ‘Mini-Moon’ will begin to orbit Earth next weAek: What to know. Forbes. https://www.forbes.com/sites/ariannajohnson/2024/09/19/temporary-mini-moon-will-begin-orbit-around-earth-next-week-what-to-know/

ANDRZEJ WOJCICKI/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY & ANDRZEJ WOJCICKI/SCIENCE PHOTO LIBRARY. (2024, September 26). Near-Earth asteroid, artwork – Stock Image F005/5892. Science Photo Library.