The object, roughly the size of a bus, became temporarily captured by Earth’s gravity, earning it the moniker of a “mini-moon.” What sets 2024 PT5 apart is its composition, which bears a ...

The sky will have a new cosmic visitor this fall. A second moon will drift into Earth’s orbit. Asteroid 2024 PT5 is poised to become a temporary mini moon of Earth, a phenomenon that will last ...

Asteroid 2024 PT5, which almost became a temporary mini-moon to Earth, was recently found to be a broken-off part of the moon itself. This discovery has led scientists to believe there are many more ...

Discovered in August 2024, PT5’s silicate-rich composition rules out an artificial origin. The study, led by Theodore Kareta (Lowell Observatory) and Oscar Fuentes-Munoz (NASA JPL), is available ...