An asteroid named Arjun 2025 PN7 has been spotted near Earth, which scientists are calling Earth's new moon.
Highlights
An asteroid named Arjun 2025 PN7 has been spotted near Earth.
It is estimated that it will continue to move along the Earth in this manner until 2080.
The PN7 asteroid discovered in 2025 belongs to the Arjuna class.
Earth has found a new small moon. Scientists have named it Arjun 2025 PN7. It's actually a small asteroid that orbits near Earth. Interestingly, the asteroid is orbiting the Sun, not Earth. Scientists estimate it will continue to orbit Earth until 2080. Let's learn some interesting facts about this new companion.
An asteroid named Arjun 2025 PN7 has been spotted near the Earth, which scientists are calling Earth's new moon. It is estimated that it will keep moving along with the Earth in this manner till 2080. Scientists have called it ( via ) Quasi moon. That is, half moon which started revolving around the Earth in 1960 and will keep revolving like this till 2080. The PN7 asteroid discovered in 2025 belongs to the Arjun class. This is a special group of asteroids, which revolve around the Sun in the same way as the Earth's orbit.
These asteroids aren't gravitationally bound to our planet like real moons, but they do stay around us for long periods of time, forming curved paths that make it appear as if they're orbiting Earth. But they're actually orbiting the Sun.
Scientists say that half-moons like PN7 orbit the Sun continuously. Their orbital period is similar to Earth's, orbiting the Sun in about a year. However, their orbits differ slightly, causing them to sometimes come closer and sometimes move further apart over time. The story of these strange companion asteroids of Earth began with the discovery of 1991 VG. 1991 VG was the first asteroid discovered with an Earth-like orbit. At that time, its close approach led scientists to many strange theories, including the possibility that it might be an alien probe.
