Watch: Earth to have a ‘mini-moon’ for 2 months

The asteroid 2024 PT5, which will become a mini-moon from Sunday, was discovered by researchers in Sutherland in the Northern Cape.

2 hours ago
Allison Cooper 1 minute read
YouTube video screenshot/@ Territory.

A small asteroid, discovered in August and named 2024 PT5, will orbit Earth from Sunday to November 25, forming a temporary ‘mini-moon’.

According to a research paper published by the American Astronomical Society, near-Earth objects (NEOs) that follow horseshoe paths and approach Earth at close range and low relative velocity, may undergo mini-moon events.

According to the research paper published by Carlos and Raúl de la Fuente Marcos earlier this month, Earth can capture asteroids from the NEO population and pull them into orbit, making them ‘mini-moons’. That is how 2024 PT5, spotted by Nasa’s Asteroid Terrestrial-impact Last Alert System via a telescope in Sutherland in the Northern Cape on August 7, will become a mini-moon.

“Sometimes, these temporary captures do not complete one revolution before dropping out of orbit and returning to their regular heliocentric trajectories.”

The NEO is around 10m wide.

According to Techno-science.net, previous similar events include a mini-moon in 2006, which remained in orbit for nearly a year, and a more recent one in 2020.

Space.com says 2024 PT5 won’t be visible to the majority of skywatchers. “The object is too small and dim for typical amateur telescopes and binoculars. However, the object is well within the brightness range of typical telescopes used by professional astronomers.”

Mini-moons often come from regions near Earth, such as the Arjuna asteroid belt. While they may be captured by Earth’s gravity, they eventually escape.

 

@astrokirsten

Wait… is Earth getting a second moon? 🌕 Well, kind of! A newly discovered near-Earth object, 2024 PT5, is about to become a mini-moon! Starting this Sunday, September 29th, it’ll be chilling with us until November 25th before it escapes Earth’s orbit. 🪐 Mini-moons are objects temporarily captured by Earth’s gravity, but they don’t stick around long! This one’s too small to see, but it’ll make a comeback in 2025! Paper information: Carlos de la Fuente Marcos, & Raúl de la Fuente Marcos (2024). A Two-month Mini-moon: 2024 PT5 Captured by Earth from September to November. Research Notes of the AAS, 8(9), 224. Link: https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.3847/2515-5172/ad781f MiniMoon Asteroids Space NearEarthObjects Astronomy

♬ original sound – Dr Kirsten Banks – Dr Kirsten Banks

Read original story on www.citizen.co.za

2 hours ago
Allison Cooper 1 minute read
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