A Car-Sized Moon Has Been Recently Discovered To Be Orbiting Around Earth
Image via Shutterstock
A possible second moon, about the size of a car, was spotted orbiting Earth this month. The celestial object, discovered by astronomer Kacper Wierzchos from Arizona’s Catalina Sky Survey, now bears the name “2020 CD3.”
First identified as an asteroid, 2020 CD3 could likely be deemed a mini-moon as it is anticipated to float around Earth in the next two months.
“Earth has a new temporarily captured object/possible mini-moon,” Kacper Wierzchos shared on Twitter, along with an animation clip showcasing the “mini-moon” in the night sky.
Based on Wierzchos’ analysis on its flight path, he estimated that the celestial object could have been circulating the Earth for about three years. He gauged the size of it to be around 1.9 to 3.5 meters (6.2 to 11.5 feet) wide, similar to an average car.
Upon hearing the news, SpaceX boss Elon Musk cheekily chimed in, “It’s not mine.”
Wierzchos deduced this object to be the second asteroid found to orbit Earth among an estimate of “one million known asteroids.”
BIG NEWS (thread 1/3). Earth has a new temporarily captured object/Possible mini-moon called 2020 CD3. On the night of Feb. 15, my Catalina Sky Survey teammate Teddy Pruyne and I found a 20th magnitude object. Here are the discovery images. pic.twitter.com/zLkXyGAkZl
— Kacper Wierzchos (@WierzchosKacper) February 26, 2020
It’s not mine
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) February 26, 2020
[via NewScientist, cover image via Shutterstock]
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