NASA has verified the presence of a temporary companion orbiting Earth — a small asteroid now classified as a quasi-moon. The object, discovered by astronomers at the University of Hawaii earlier this week, follows a path that nearly synchronizes with Earth’s orbit around the Sun. Preliminary analyses suggest that this miniature companion, estimated to be between 18 and 36 meters in diameter (roughly the size of a multi-storey building), has been accompanying Earth for about six decades and could remain in its current orbital pattern until around 2083.
Designated 2025 PN7, the asteroid differs fundamentally from the Moon. While Earth’s primary moon is gravitationally bound to the planet, 2025 PN7 is influenced by a delicate gravitational interplay between Earth and the Sun. This dynamic causes it to oscillate between 4 million kilometers (about ten times the Moon’s distance from Earth) and 17 million kilometers away. Such oscillations are characteristic of quasi-moons — objects temporarily captured by Earth’s gravity before either drifting away into space or occasionally being drawn into the atmosphere.
Astronomers first detected 2025 PN7 during a routine telescope survey earlier this year. Initially appearing as an indistinct speck of light, subsequent observations confirmed its Earth-linked orbit. The discovery adds to the list of eight known quasi-moons observed to date, each contributing valuable insights into near-Earth gravitational dynamics and the behavior of small celestial bodies in our planetary neighborhood.
While Earth’s permanent moon remains its dominant and luminous satellite, quasi-moons like 2025 PN7 serve as reminders of the ever-changing nature of space near our planet. They underscore the complexity of gravitational interactions and the transient companionships Earth forms as it journeys around the Sun — silent, fleeting travelers that expand our understanding of celestial motion.
