In August 2024, astronomers around the world were intrigued by the discovery of an asteroid the size of a passenger bus. The rock was on a trajectory toward Earth, although there were no signs of a future collision. In September, a pair of scientists from the Complutense University of Madrid calculated its movement through space. They described it as a new mini-moon because it would orbit Earth once every 54 days, although only temporarily.
The time of that mini moon called 2024 PT5 is over. Instead of completing a circuit of the Earth, its path was more like that of a horseshoe. The asteroid officially began its farewell path. It is now heading towards the Sun and, if nothing interferes, will return to Earth in January 2024 and then in 2055. The object, referred to by NASA as a “distant companion,” is located 3.2 million kilometers from Earth. It is nine times the average distance of our natural satellite. 2024 PT5 never got close enough to be trapped by the planet’s gravitational pull.
What exactly is 2024 PT5?
2024 PT5 accompanied the Earth for weeks because it has a movement similar to that of the planet around the Sun. It is a planetary coincidence. Space agencies are interested in the object because it was identified thanks to the Asteroid Terrestrial Impact Alert system (ATLAS). The mini moon is so small and so far away that it cannot be seen with even the most advanced telescopes. Its tracking is a scientific achievement in itself.
“While not exactly a mini moon, 2024 PT5 is an interesting object and NASA plans to track it with planetary radar. Part of the Deep Space Network will track the object during its next close pass by our planet, in January 2025, which will still be five times farther from Earth than the Moon,” NASA assured.
There are more mysteries surrounding this piece of rock found by chance. Due to the similarity of its orbit to that of the Earth, astronomers think it is a part of the Moon. A meteorite impact from the past would have ejected that 10-meter rock, turning it into an object that arrives as a tourist on the planet. It is also believed that it could have come from the Arjuna asteroid belt. There are other theories about its origin that suggest it is a space rocket fragment. Current evidence leans towards it being a naturally occurring object.
There are other records of objects that were mini moons. For example, in February 2020, the mini moon called 2020 CD3 appeared, the size of a car or 1.9 to 3.5 meters in length. Before it were 2016 HO3 and 2006 RH120, discovered by the Catalina Sky Survey observation program. The latter remained near Earth from September 2006 to June 2007.
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