Question

Earth will get a second moon for two months

Comments

Mini-Moons Are Temporary:

Earth’s "mini-moon" or "temporary satellite" is not a permanent addition to the planet's orbit. These objects are small asteroids or debris that are captured by Earth’s gravity for a brief period before they either escape or collide with Earth. These mini-moons usually last a few months or a few years, not indefinitely.
Not a New Phenomenon:

Earth has had several "mini-moons" before. They come and go, so calling it the "second mini-moon" may be misleading or too simplistic. The article may overlook previous similar events, as Earth frequently interacts with small space objects in this way.

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Your comment does a great job of articulating what is missing from the article and how it can be misleading without full context. Not knowing this information can lead to people spreading misinformation or not fully factual information. Nice job.

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This wasn't necessarily untrue, but what was pulled in by Earth's gravity was not actually a 'moon'. It was an asteroid named 2024 PT5, which was referred to as a 'mini-moon' at most. According to KTLA, the asteroid was only about the size of a bus, which is nowhere near the size of our moon. NASA states that the moon is a quarter of the Earth's size, and we all know that is much bigger than a bus. While it is true that it was briefly within the Earth's orbit, it is misleading to not state the period of time in the title of your claim, as it gives off the impression that this 'mini-moon' is a permanent addition to our orbit. It was in orbit from September 29th to November 25th--about two months as was mentioned in your caption. The only thing this claim lacks is clarity in details that leads it to be misinformation. The site named Astronomy states that celestial objects must stay within a certain distance from another object in order to continue being in its orbit, and The Register Guard states that 2024 PT5's orbit will lead it (or has led it at this time) outside of that area, which means it cannot stay within Earth's orbit permanently.

https://ktla.com/news/nationworld/earths-2nd-moon-is-here-what-you-need-to-know/
https://science.nasa.gov/solar-system/moon/five-things-to-know-about-the-moon/
https://www.astronomy.com/observing/why-does-earth-have-only-one-moon/
https://www.registerguard.com/story/news/local/2024/09/26/mini-moon-2024-pt5-asteroid-oregon/75378304007/

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The headline is not completely false, only slightly misleading. When referring to a second mini-moon they are talking about an asteroid that will be entering the earth's orbit for a while. The actual substance of the article is all true, they go on to say that the reason that it can be called a "mini-moon" instead of just an asteroid is because it will make at least one full rotation around the earth. Additionally, the asteroid heading for the orbit is larger than some of our past "mini-moons" further granting it "mini-moon" status. Much of the research comes from a research article published in Research Notes of the AAS. The information matches up between the two sources and is reliable.

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"Earth will get a second moon for two months" is true. Between September 29 and November 25, 2024, Earth briefly ensnared 2024 PT5, a tiny asteroid that is frequently referred to as a "mini-moon." This roughly 10-meter-diameter asteroid was found on August 7, 2024, by the South African ATLAS system. It entered Earth's orbit and stayed there for almost two months before reentering its solar orbit. While uncommon, these brief captures of near-Earth objects are not unheard of. 2024 PT5 was too small to be seen with the unaided eye, necessitating the use of professional-grade telescopes for observation.

I watched this video gaining more info on the topic: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Aah1Ip9h2q8

Answer 1

The CBS article claims that “Earth will get a second “mini-moon” for 2 months this year”. When examining the origin, the author Caitlin O’Kane seems to be a reliable author who has written numerous articles for well-established news outlets and works as a senior manager of content and production at CBS. When searching CBS News on Media Bias Fact Check, the outlet is reported as highly factual, with proper sourcing and no recorded failed fact checks for over the past five years. However, the term “mini-moon” is misleading, as the object is identified by NASA to be an asteroid, named 2024 PT5. While the asteroid will orbit the Earth for a projected 56.6 days, this does not make it a moon. The terminology used by CBS, while it is in quotations in the title, is still misleading and inaccurate to the scientific truth. Though CBS News reports verified facts about 2024 PT5, citing NASA, a highly credible source for space research, the use of the term mini-moon is misleading. When searching for NASA information about the asteroid, outlets such as the NASA blog never referred to 2024 PT5 as a mini-moon, maintaining strictly scientifically accurate terminology. However, when copying the CBS News title into the search bar, many similar articles appeared that also referred to the asteroid as a mini-moon. Outlets such as Live Science, USA Today, Phys.org, and BBC all used the term mini-moon in their titles, only clarifying that the subject mentioned is an asteroid further into the article. Therefore, the CBS News article, and other similar articles, are misleading their audiences by purposefully misusing scientific terms. The difference between news reporting outlets and scientific records such as NASA pages highlights how popular news is often more exaggerated and upheld to less strict standards on its adherence to scientific accuracy. 

Caitlin O'Kane - CBS News

CBS News - Bias and Credibility - Media Bias/Fact Check

Earth will get a second "mini-moon" for 2 months this year - CBS News

NASA to Track Asteroid 2024 PT5 on Next Close Pass, January 2025 – Planetary Defense

Earth's new 'mini-moon' will orbit our planet for the next 2 months | Live Science

'Mini-moon' to join Earth's orbit for nearly 2 months, study finds

Earth to have new mini-moon for two months

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/articles/c3dvxgrmk95o

Answer 2

Your claim that Earth will get a second moon is misleading. While it is true that is true earth temporarily caught a second moon an astroid called 2024 pt5 this "moon" will be in orbit  starting from September,29,2024 and end on November 25th.

https://www.space.com/earth-will-capture-second-moon-sept-2024

Answer 3

Unfortunately, the claim "Earth will get a second moon for two months" is very exaggerated and misleading. In the CBS article itself, it refers to this "mini-moon" as an asteroid multiple times. Furthermore, in an article published by Northeastern Global News, assistant professor of physics Jaqueline McCleary states, "'[...] it will be captured by the Earth’s gravitational potential,' she adds. 'But instead of doing a complete orbit like a regular moon, it’s more going to be deflected and then come back in and then kicked back out again and return to more or less its previous orbit around the sun.'" In other words, this "mini-moon" is not even close to being an actual moon, as it doesn't share the same characteristics (even though the title makes the public think otherwise).

https://news.northeastern.edu/2024/10/04/mini-moon-earth-explanation/ 

Answer 4

The claim is misleading but partly true. Additionally, this event has already happened. According to NASA scientists, Earth's gravitational pull captured an asteroid on 9/29/24. The asteroid remained in Earth's gravitational pull until 11/25/24. The asteroid was only 37 feet wide. Our actual moon has a diameter of around 2,159 miles. Our moon has been in Earth's orbit for a lot longer, and the asteroid only temporarily got pulled in. It didn't complete a full orbit around Earth. So while the asteroid did get pulled into our gravitational pull it wouldn't be considered a moon but it would be considered a mini moon which is when a small asteroid temporarily gets captured by a planet's gravitational pull. In conclusion, the title "Earth will get a second moon for two months" is misleading but somewhat factual as the Earth had a moon and a mini-moon orbiting at the same time for a short period.

Articles:

https://www.space.com/earth-will-capture-second-moon-sept-2024

https://news.northeastern.edu/2024/10/04/mini-moon-earth-explanation/

Answer 5

Using this claim is very missleading. What actually happened was an asteroid from the Ajuna asteroid belt was passing by Earth and got pulled in by Earth's gravity. This asteroid is called 2024 PT5 and will only be in Earth's orbit for 56.5 days. CBS news said that when an object has entered Earth's gravitational pull and complete a full revolution around Earth, they become so called 'mini-moons'. So based on that, I can conclude that this claim is exaggerated.

https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.3847/2515-5172/ad781f

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/earth-second-mini-moon-2024/

Answer 6

Earth will get a second moon - News Detective

Earth will get a second "mini-moon" for 2 months this year - CBS News

This article claims Earth will get a second moon/ mini moon for two months. After doing some research on what a moon actually is: I have concluded that a moon is a consistent satellite that orbits Earth/ plant(s). The asteroid being called the “mini-moon” cannot be considered a moon but, an asteroid caught in Earth's gravitational pull for a brief moment. Here is a great explanation of the difference between a moon and an asteroid: “Moon is a natural satellite orbiting Earth with a stable trajectory and visible phases, whereas asteroids are smaller rocky bodies primarily found in the asteroid belt, with irregular orbits.”-Moon vs. Asteroid — What’s the Difference?

Answer 7

No, this claim does not appear to be fully true. The CBS article cited does not support this claim. CBS explains that an asteroid will enter the earth's orbit, and complete a “horseshoe” orbit, before exiting earth's gravitational pull. CBS explains that this asteroid can be dubbed the title of “mini-moon”, although they do not imply that earth is gaining an official moon of any sort. 

Northwestern global news explains the NEO entering earth's gravitational pull: “What exactly is the mini moon? It’s actually a small asteroid”. The asteroid's title “mini-moon” implies truth to this claim, although this “mini-moon” is drastically unlike earth's primary moon. So, while there is a certain level of truth to this claim, it is somewhat deceptive, and certainly implying something far different than the truth. 

sources:

https://www.cbsnews.com/news/earth-second-mini-moon-2024/

https://news.northeastern.edu/2024/10/04/mini-moon-earth-explanation/

Answer 8

The claim that “Earth will get a second moon for two months this year” is overall misleading and exaggerated. This claim is missing contextual pieces of information that clarify the nature of the new “moon”. This “mini-moon” is actually an asteroid that will not be visible from Earth like its primary moon. The asteroid will stay in orbit for about 2 months, not permanently. According to an article by Phys.org, the asteroid will be 2.8 million miles from Earth as opposed to the moon being 238,855 miles from Earth. Overall the “mini-moon” will not resemble Earth’s moon in appearance, and is not technically considered a new moon. 

Sources:

https://phys.org/news/2024-09-earth-capture-moon-weekend-nasa.html#:~:text=The%20new%20moon%20is%20actually,regular%20orbit%20around%20the%20sun

Answer 9

No, Earth will not be getting a second moon. The claim is not completely incorrect, however it is exaggerated/misleading. The CBS News article titled “Earth will get a second ‘mini-moon’ for 2 months this year, published on September 20, 2024, accurately reports on the temporary capture of an asteroid called 2024 PT5 by Earth’s gravity. Referring to the asteroid as a “mini-moon” is an exaggeration, but the article correctly states that 2024 PT5, discovered in August 2024, became a “mini-moon” from September 29 to November 25, 2024. It followed a horseshoe-shaped orbit around Earth. Through conducting a bit of personal research, I concluded that the information aligns with findings from astronomers at the University of Pennsylvania, who noted that 2024 PT5 was temporarily captured by Earth’s gravity during this period.

The article also mentions that 2024 PT5 is from the Arjuna asteroid group, which has orbits similar to Earth’s and can occasionally be captured by Earth’s gravity.
 

Regarding the asteroid's visibility from Earth, the article notes that it is too small to be seen with the naked eye, or with amateur telescopes or binoculars. According to Astronomy Magazine, a peer-reviewed astronomy journal,  astronomers estimated its size to be approximately 10 to 11 meters in diameter, making it challenging to observe without professional equipment.

While the CBS News article accurately reported the initial discovery and characteristics of 2024 PT5, referring to the asteroid as a “second moon” in the claim title is misleading.

Sources:

https://penntoday.upenn.edu/news/takeaways-new-mini-moon#:~:text=The%20mini%2Dmoon%20won't,celestial%20bouncer%2C%E2%80%9D%20he%20says.

https://news.web.baylor.edu/news/story/2024/newly-discovered-asteroid-2024-pt5-becomes-earths-temporary-mini-moon

https://www.astronomy.com/science/earth-gets-a-new-mini-moon-this-weekend/

Answer 10

The article claims that Earth will get a "mini-moon" for 2 months but exaggerates what is actually taking place. The word "mini-moon" gives the assumption that an object like the moon but just smaller is going to be orbiting the Earth alongside the moon but they are actually just asteroids that get caught in Earth's orbit. The article got it's source from RNAAS which makes the same claim that Earth will get a "mini-moon" for two months. The "mini-moon" in question, is an asteroid named 2024 PT5. This claim is different though when it comes to NASA and they break it down and explain what it actually is happening. In NASA's covering of 2024 PT5 they acknowledge that mini-moons are things that exist and can occur but say that it is not an actual mini-moon because the object will actually never be captured by Earth's gravity. The CBS article is not false but exaggerates what the "mini-moon" actually is and makes the false claim that it will orbit Earth when it actually never will. It instead, as said in the NASA article, "has a similar motion to Earth's around the Sun."

Sources:

https://iopscience.iop.org/article/10.3847/2515-5172/ad781f

https://blogs.nasa.gov/planetarydefense/2024/10/02/nasa-to-track-asteroid-2024-pt5-on-next-close-pass-january-2025/