Question

Earth will get a second moon for two months

Comments

The fact check seems slightly misleading. There is no information in the article about this "second moon", for a more accurate statement I would have suggested explaining the tiny astroid that will be floating around the moon rather than calling said astroid a "tiny moon".

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According to phys.org, the new moon is actually a tiny asteroid. They say it is going to orbit the planet and stick around for a little less than two months. I understand how this could be perceived as a new moon, but I'm unsure if that's technically true.

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I agree with your comment. The claim is too vague to even remotely agree with it. The moon as we know is earths only natural satellite, is it possible to get another yes, but it wont be similar to the moon we know. Scientists state that it will be an asteroid that will go into our orbit for a little period of time before leaving.

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I think that this claim is not necessarily false, but misleading in a way. After my owmn research, I found that there will be a "mini moon" that will orbit for a month or two , but saying we are getting a second moon is quite misleading.

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The main claim of this article is not completely untrue, although it is misleading. The asteroid 2024 PT5 was discovered by the Asteroid Terrestrial-impact Last Alert System, and will orbit the Earth during September and November and appear as if Earth has a second moon. However, further research via the ATLAS and NASA websites does not indicate that the asteroid will be a moon or have the same properties as Earth’s moon.

Answer 1

While the claim that the earth will be getting a second moon for 2 months, is true, it lacks context. The second moon, a school bus sized asteroid known as 2024 PT5, began orbiting the earth on September 29th. The way the claim is phrased is sensationalized in order to drive click. The earth fairly regularly picks up stray astroids and comets and pulls them into an orbit for a few weeks or months before they drift back out into a solar orbit. 

Source: https://www.nbcmiami.com/weather/stories-weather/earth-just-got-a-second-moon-but-not-for-long-heres-why/3433266/#:~:text=A%20second%20moon%20joined%20the,and%20will%20briefly%20orbit%20earth.

Answer 2

This claim is exaggerated and misleading. The article states that the second moon will be a small asteroid orbiting the planet. This is misleading because asteroids are much different than moons. Yes, a small asteroid will gravitate around the planet, but it is by no means a second moon. While the information about the asteroid and its path in space is correct, the idea that it is a second moon is false and misleading.

Answer 3

I believe the claim is somewhat accurate but needs further clarification. The news article by CBS, states that an asteroid named 2024 PT5 is predicted to orbit Earth more temporarily as a "mini-moon", from late Sept. to late Nov. With that being said, fully claiming a second moon can make the reader think that a whole new planet is set to be created. The mini-moon isn't a permanent second moon, as it will eventually resume orbiting the Sun and be away from Earth. 2024 PT5 is larger than some previous mini-moons, but its small size and temporary orbit distinguish it from Earth’s permanent moon.

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