“Mini Moon”: An asteroid that accompanies Earth for about two months

2024 PT5 is likely to orbit our planet in a horseshoe-shaped path between September 29 and November 25. The rock is likely to be part of the Moon.

Earth will have a new companion in the next few weeks, researchers report: An asteroid is likely to fly past the planet in a horseshoe-shaped orbit between Sept. 29 and Nov. 25. Then it will fly off into space. “It’s amazing,” astrophysicist Federica Spoto of the Harvard-Smithsonian Center for Astrophysics told The New York Times.

However, astronomy enthusiasts cannot hope to see two clear moons in the night sky: 2024 PT5 is too small to be seen with the naked eye – it is only about 10 meters across. Most asteroids rarely enter far from Earth, or even create a crater. 2024 PT5 has a different fate: it will be captured by Earth's gravity and accompany the planet for about eight weeks, researchers reported in a “Research Notes” of the American Astronomical Society.

2024 PT5 was spotted using ground-based telescopes in early August. The object is only about 10 meters (32 feet) tall. “The discovery of 2024 PT5 reminds us that there is a fairly busy highway circling the Earth,” Spoto said.

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Two month orbit around the Earth

The fact that the asteroid is making a two-month orbit around Earth is capped off by a curious detail: The rock is said to be a piece of ejecta from the impact with the moon. The temporary mini-moon could therefore be part of the actual moon.

Carlos de la Fuente Marcos and Raúl de la Fuente Marcos of the Complutense University of Madrid explain in their “Research Notes” that it is likely to be a so-called Arjuna asteroid with an Earth-like orbit around the Sun. It is unlikely to be an artificial object such as space debris because of its trajectory.

Some comrades come back again and again.

In the coming months, those dreaming of mining raw materials in space may look to the skies in particular with longing. “Every time there’s talk of mining asteroids, it’s about small moons,” Spoto told the New York Times. So the mineral-rich rocks orbiting Earth would be a good target for prospectors.

Similar visitors to “2024 PT5” have already been recorded several times: in 1981 and 2022, for example, “2022 NX1”, as noted in the “Research Notes”. It will return in 2051. “2024 PT5” will visit Earth again in 2055. (APA/dpa)