Scientists aren't sure if 2024 PT5 is an asteroid. At roughly 10 meters in length, 2024 PT5 is difficult to spot without a telescope. Yet a new study reveals that for the next two months, 2024 PT5 will join our Moon in orbit around our planet, which means Earth will (temporarily) have a second moon, from September 29 to November 25.
Technically known as a "mini-moon event," celestial bodies like asteroids and comets will occasionally be captured by Earth's gravitational pull and temporarily orbit around our home. If they complete full revolutions of our planet while doing so, they are considered to be so-called "mini-moons." The leader researcher on the study, Universidad Complutense de Madrid professor Carlos de la Fuente Marcos, told Space.com that "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 kilometers)."
