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Earth Lures 2nd Moon Into Its Orbit
The moon has been Earth’s primary companion in space for about 4 billion years, inspiring countless poems, songs, and space missions. Recently, however, the Earth attracted a second moon — a mini-moon temporarily pulled into its orbit by the Earth’s gravitational force. The tiny asteroid, named 2024 PT5, was about 33 feet wide, roughly the size of a school bus.
The moon’s rocky little companion didn’t hang around for long, however: 2024 PT5 hurtled away a little before Thanksgiving toward its permanent home, the Arjuna asteroid belt, a collection of space rocks orbiting the sun. Scientists say the Earth’s gravitational field pulled 2024 PT5 as it ventured within 28 million miles of us, traveling at a relatively low speed — in space terms — of around 2,200 mph. The Earth’s downward force was strong enough to draw the slow-moving asteroid into orbit. The rendezvous didn’t last long. The attraction wasn’t sufficient to capture 2024 PT5 for more than about two months. 2024 PT5 didn’t make much of a splash among amateur astronomers, either, because it was too small to be seen through amateur telescopes or binoculars. Natural objects become moons when they orbit planets, held by the larger body’s gravitational pull. Some moons form at the same time as their home planet, while others come into being when an asteroid smashes into their primary planet. Still others, like 2024 PT5, are itinerant asteroids that come too close to a planet to escape its gravitational pull. Several mini-moons have been detected in Earth’s orbit since 2006, but all proved fleeting companions. “You may say that if a true satellite is like a customer buying goods inside a store, objects like 2024 PT5 are window shoppers,” astronomer Carlos de la Fuente Marcos told Space.com.
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