Tiny asteroid will be pulled in by gravity between Sep. 29 and Nov. 25, however will not be discernible via basic telescopes; celestial object expected to return only in 2055 The post Asteroid set to temporarily become Earth’s ‘second moon’ appeared first on The Times of Israel.

Earth about to pull tiny space rock into its orbit as temporary ‘mini moon’, scientists say - Space rock to orbit Earth for brief period between September and November, researchers say

The bus-size asteroid, which was discovered on August 7 by the NASA-funded Asteroid Terrestrial-impact Last Alert System (ATLAS), will be sucked in by Earth’s gravitational pull from September 29 to November 25, USA Today reported. During this interstellar layover, the space rock will likely become a “temporary mini-moon,” per Marcos.

An asteroid is approaching the Earth which the experts say will come close enough to be caught in our planet’s gravity well, technically becoming a second moon, at least for a few months. University of Iowa physics and astronomy Professor Casey DeRoo says this asteroid will be captured by the Earth’s gravitational pull around September

PT5 will only be in Earth’s orbit for a few weeks, from Sept. 29 until Nov. 25, but will remain close for a few months afterwards