Earth's 'second moon' to be visible from today

Bengaluru: The mysteries of the universe are beyond imagination. Earth, the only planet in our solar system known to support life and home to a natural satellite—the moon—is now getting a temporary “mini-moon.” Like our regular moon, this celestial body will orbit Earth, but only for a brief period. When a smaller object orbits Earth, it’s called a mini moon.

An asteroid named 2024 PT5 has been captured by Earth’s gravitational pull and will revolve around the planet starting from Monday until November 25. This is Earth’s fifth detected mini moon, also known as a Near Earth object (NEO). The first mini-moon, 1991 VG, was spotted in 1991. According to Manish Purohit, a former ISRO scientist, “A tiny asteroid, named 2024 PT5, has become Earth’s temporary companion.

After approaching Earth for a long time, its path was influenced by our planet’s gravity. This caused it to become a ‘mini moon’ for a few months, circling us until late November.” Technically, 2024 PT5 cannot be considered a mini moon, as it won’t complete one full revolution around the Earth. Rather, it will revolve in a horseshoe shape for around 55 days and escape the Earth’s gravitational pull before completing the revolution.

The mini moon, in its infinite universal journey, is said to have escaped from the Arjuna asteroid belt. It is said to be roughly 10 meters (33 feet) in diameter and won’t be visible to the naked eye and can only be spotted using special telescopes. Many asteroids pass near Earth every year. However, only a few get caught by the gravitational pull this way, as most of them are either too small or they travel farther away from the Earth.