Earth is set to welcome a "mini moon" at the end of September, giving the planet two moons. But the tiny asteroid will only temporarily orbit Earth until right before the holiday season when it is due to leave.
A "mini moon", named 2024 PT₅, was discovered on August 7 by the Asteroid Terresterial-Impact Last Alert System (ATLAS). After calculations were done on the tiny asteroid, it was determined that there was no threat from 2024 PT₅, unlike the asteroid that struck New Mexico, causing shatter cones. Instead, the asteroid will be pulled into Earth's gravitational pull starting September 29 and will orbit the planet until November 25.
While the idea of seeing an asteroid less than one million miles away from Earth is exciting, unfortunately, 2024 PT₅ will not be visible to the naked eye. At just 33 feet wide, it will require high-powered telescopes to even attempt to catch a glimpse of the "mini moon."
Once 2024 PT₅ breaks free of the gravitational pull of Earth, it will return to its orbit around the sun.
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Where The "Mini Moon" Is & Where It Came From
Asteroids near Earth
A "mini moon" is an asteroid that cannot escape the Earth's gravity for a certain period of time. In some cases, it can be a matter of hours, or like in the situation for 2024 PT₅, several weeks.
How the asteroid will escape is determined by the trajectory along which it circles the Earth. Where there is less gravitational pull, the asteroid can escape and return to space.
It appears that 2024 PT₅ comes from the Arjuna asteroid belt. The asteroid belt follows a similar orbit to that of Earth, about 93 million miles from the sun. As such, it is not uncommon for these asteroids to make their way towards Earth. Some are caught in the gravity of the planet, while others simply make a close call.
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When 2024 PT₅ Will Come Into Earth's Orbit Again
Asteroids near Earth
While 2024 PT₅ plans to stick around until the end of the year when the tiny asteroid leaves Earth's orbit, this will not be goodbye forever. This is because not only has 2024 PT₅ been in Earth's orbit before, but it is predicted to return in the next few decades.
The current estimated date for 2024 PT₅ to return to Earth's orbit is November 8, 2055. It is predicted that the asteroid will make a close rotation around Earth before leaving. Beyond 2055, it appears that another close rotation of the Earth is anticipated to be in January 2084, when 2024 PT₅ will be one million miles away.
This is not the first time 2024 PT₅ has come into the Earth's atmosphere. The last time it was this close was in October 1937. However, in "March 1960, April 1982, and February 2003," 2024 PT₅ was just over five million miles away.
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While it may not be easy to find 2024 PT₅ in the night sky, there will be plenty of opportunity to try, given that 2024 PT₅ will be a close neighbor of the Earth until the end of November. So, take to those Dark Sky locations this fall with a telescope, and enjoy some asteroid hunting!