The Earth will be getting a second moon that’ll hang around for a few months, and I don’t even want to know what sort of astrological mess this is going to create.
According to a study published by the American Astronomical Society earlier this week, the Earth’s gravitational pull will absorb a bus-sized asteroid that will become a “mini moon” circling our planet.
The mini moon, also known as the 2024 PT5, will orbit the Earth for around two months between September 29 and November 25.
As the name suggests, the mini moon is tiny and, therefore, will be too small to see with a regular telescope or pair of backyard binoculars.
The asteroid is about 10 metres long, which is virtually microscopic compared to the Earth’s moon — which is a whopping 3,474km in diameter.
However, it is bright enough that experts with professional quality telescopes will be able to catch a glimpse and (hopefully) share photos with the rest of us.
“The object is well within the brightness range of typical telescopes used by professional astronomers,” the lead author of the research Carlos de la Fuente Marcos told Space.com of the mini moon.
Specifically, you’ll need a “telescope with a diameter of at least 30 inches plus a CCD or CMOS detector” to observe the mini moon.
While mini moons aren’t particularly rare, being able to actually observe them from Earth certainly is. For the select few who will catch a glimpse of 2024 PT5, they’ll witness just the fifth ever mini moon seen from Earth.
But perhaps the most important question to ask here is how is the mini moon going to impact us astrologically?
According to PEOPLE‘s resident astrology Kyle Thomas, the asteroid entering Earth’s orbit could signify “a notion to connect to one’s inner world and can grant ties to feminine energies.”
It could also signal that “something new may be emerging in our own lives”, so let’s all manifest that being a positive change.
Thomas says “we must pay greater attention to our feelings” during the mini moon, and recommends “rest, rejuvenation and tapping into our intuitive and psychic energies”, so I’ll be taking that as a sign to book a massage and have a sleep-in every day.
The post Why Is Earth Getting A Second Moon This Month? And How Can I See It? appeared first on PEDESTRIAN.TV .
