Planet Earth could find itself with a second “temporary” Moon as early as September 29, in the form of a small asteroid which will orbit around it for a period of about two months before continuing on its way.
“In [certaines] conditions, geocentric energy [d’un objet de la ceinture d’astéroïdes d’Arjuna, près de la Terre] can become negative and the object becomes temporarily bound to Earth,” the lead author of the research shared by the American Astronomical Society, Carlos de la Fuente Marcos, explained to Space.com on Tuesday.
Thus, as of next week, the Earth should acquire a second Moon, in this case, a “mini-Moon”, while the asteroid 2024 PT5 will remain in its orbit for a period of approximately two months, predicted the professor at the Complutense University of Madrid, Spain.
For such a situation to occur, a body must approach sufficiently close to the Earth, at a distance of approximately 4.5 million kilometers, at a sufficiently low speed, approximately 3540 km/ h, to be attracted by the Earth, he continued to the American media specializing in space news.
These “mini-Moons” can then orbit the planet for a few days, a few weeks or even a few months. In rarer cases, which occur once every 10 or 20 years, these objects may remain in place for one or more years.
Unfortunately, the temporary mini-Moon will not be visible to the naked eye, or even using amateur telescopes, during its short visit.
Only professional telescopes will be able to perceive this event which only occurs a few times over the course of a decade.
After its two months as a “mini-Moon,” 2024 PT5 is expected to return to a Sun-centered orbit, rejoining the Arjuna asteroid belt, according to Space.com.
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