An illustration shows Earth capturing 2024 PT as a temporary mini-moon as its longstanding lunar companion looks on.- pix courtesy of Space.com
THE cosmos has a way of surprising us, and this month is no exception. Imagine looking up at the night sky and discovering a second moon orbiting our planet.
But don't start planning your moon parties just yet.
Could Earth really be welcoming a new celestial companion, even if just for a short while, or is this just another case of astronomical exaggeration?
Verdict:
TRUE
This month, Earth will gain a temporary second moon in the form of the asteroid 2024 PT5. Unlike our long-standing moon, this "mini-moon" will stay with us for merely two months before returning to its usual path around the sun in an asteroid belt that trails Earth.
A team of scientists, specialising in "mini-moon events," identified this upcoming gravitational capture of 2024 PT5. They noticed its unique movement patterns while regularly monitoring newly discovered celestial objects for interesting activities.
"The object that is going to pay us a visit belongs to the Arjuna asteroid belt, a secondary asteroid belt made of space rocks that follow orbits very similar to that of Earth at an average distance to the sun of about 93 million miles (150 million kilometres), research lead author and Universidad Complutense de Madrid professor Carlos de la Fuente Marcos told Space.com.
"Objects in the Arjuna asteroid belt are part of the near-Earth object population of asteroids and comets."
Marcos pointed out that some objects from the Arjuna belt can come relatively close to Earth, around 4.5 million km away, and move at slower speeds of approximately 3,540 km/h.
"Under these conditions, the geocentric energy of the object may grow negative, and the object may become a temporary moon of Earth. This particular object will undergo this process starting next week and for about two months," he said, adding that it would not follow a full orbit around Earth.
To put it simply, if a true satellite is like a shopper inside a store, then 2024 PT5 is more like a window shopper, stopping by briefly before moving on.
Unfortunately, 2024 PT5 won't be visible to the vast 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," Marcos said.
He added that a telescope with a diameter of at least 30 inches plus a CCD or CMOS detector are needed to observe this object and said that a 30-inch telescope and a human eye behind it will not be enough.
