Earth will have a second Moon for two months: how is this possible? Photo
Scientists have announced that on September 29, the Earth's gravitational field will attract an asteroid to the planet. And until November 25, this space rock, about the length of a city bus, will orbit the planet like a second moon.
According to the study, after a two-month excursion, this space object will return home to the asteroid belt that orbits the Sun. However, in 2055, it will return to Earth's orbit again, Space.com reports.
From September 29 to November 25, the asteroid 2024 PT5 will orbit our planet.
Source: NASA
"The object that is going to visit us belongs to the Arjuna asteroid belt, a secondary asteroid belt that consists of space rocks whose orbits are very similar to those of the Earth," said Carlos de la Fuente Marcos, professor at Complutense University of Madrid and lead author of the study.
According to the scientist, some asteroids in the Arjuna belt can come relatively close to Earth - about 4.5 million kilometers away. If they are moving relatively slowly for asteroids - at a speed of about 3540 km/h - then their paths are more strongly affected by the Earth's gravity than usual.
"Under these conditions, the object can become a temporary satellite of the Earth," Marcos added.
The temporary satellite will not be visible to the naked eye like our Moon.
Source: Getty
The researchers said that the asteroid, which is 10 meters long and about 3,474 km in diameter, is tiny compared to the Moon and will be difficult to spot in the sky.
"The object will be too small and dim for typical amateur telescopes and binoculars. It is within the brightness range of telescopes used by professional astronomers," said the lead author of the study.
According to the scientists, the asteroid was discovered on August 7 using the Asteroid Terrestrial-Impact Last Alert System (Atlas) program funded by NASA. This is not the first traveling satellite to circle the Earth. Our planet has already had such mini-moons in 1981 and 2022.
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