A pair of asteroid dynamics researchers from Universidad Complutense de Madrid Ciudad Universitaria have found that a small asteroid will make one orbit around the Earth starting this month before departing back into other parts of the solar system.
Prior research has shown that many asteroids fall into partial or full elliptical paths around the Earth before eventually being flung away.
Back in 2006, for example, a small asteroid circled the Earth for approximately a year—and another one did so for several years before leaving in 2020.
By noting its current size, speed and path, the pair were able to calculate its path over the next few months.
They found that it was going to come close enough to the Earth to become bound by its gravity, if only for a couple of months.
Their work shows that it will circle the Earth one time, taking 53 days, starting at the end of this month and then leaving near the middle of November.
More information: Carlos de la Fuente Marcos et al, A Two-month Mini-moon: 2024 PT 5 Captured by Earth from September to November, Research Notes of the AAS (2024). »
