Earth to welcome temporary mini-moon asteroid 2024 PT5 for two months
Earth will gain a temporary "mini-moon," an asteroid named 2024 PT5, which will orbit the planet from September 29 to November 25. The asteroid, about 33 feet wide, was discovered by NASA's ATLAS system on August 7. This event is not unique; similar occurrences happened in 1981 and 2022 with other asteroids. 2024 PT5 is part of the Near-Earth object population and will not complete a full orbit around Earth. Researchers plan to study 2024 PT5 to learn more about its composition. Mini-moons like this one may contain valuable minerals and water, which could be useful for future space exploration.