Tiny 'Minimoon' to Orbit Earth for Several Weeks

A small asteroid, approximately the length of a London bus, is set to become Earth's temporary "minimoon" for around two months. Discovered in August by the Asteroid Terrestrial-Impact Last Alert System (Atlas), the object measures about 10 meters in length and is part of the Arjuna asteroid belt. While it will be too small and dim for typical amateur telescopes, professional astronomers should be able to observe it.

Key Takeaways:

• The asteroid, named 2024 PT5, is expected to orbit Earth from September 29 to late November, a duration of approximately two months.
• The asteroid measures about 10 meters in length, comparable to a London bus, and originates from the Arjuna asteroid belt.
• Astrophysics Professor Adam Frank from the University of Rochester states that the minimoon will be too small to see with the naked eye and will require a telescope for observation.
• The asteroid is expected to come within 2.8 million miles of Earth, around seven times further away from our planet than the moon.
• Scientists believe the 'mini-moon' will return to Earth's orbit again in 2055, although researchers have not yet provided further confirmation on this claim.
• 2024 PT5 is not the first mini-moon Earth has had, with two asteroids orbiting the planet in 1981 and 2022.

Statistics:

• Length of the asteroid: approximately 10 meters
• Duration of the asteroid's orbit: approximately two months (September 29 to late November)
• Distance of the asteroid from Earth: 2.8 million miles
• Size of the asteroid (estimated): up to 137 feet across
• Diameter of the actual moon: approximately 3,474 kilometers

Sources:

• ABC (Professor Adam Frank)
• Space.com (Carlos de la Fuente Marcos)
• The Guardian
• CNN
• Asteroid Terrestrial-Impact Last Alert System (Atlas)