The earth is getting a second "mini-moon" later this month, researchers confirmed; Asteroid 2024 PT5 will stick around from Sept. 29 to Nov. 25, 2024, but it won't be visible to t

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.

Scientists predict that the asteroid 'mini moon' will re-enter Earth's orbit again in 2055. This is due to its orbit being similar to that of our planet. Calculations show that the asteroid will return to circle Earth in 2055. This is not an unprecedented event as two mini moon events were recorded previously, one in 1981 and 2022.