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Many more minimaons will be discovered in the next decade, said a team of academics led by Queen’s University in Belfast.
It comes after details of the finding of the second minimaon, a floating silicate boulder called 2020 CD3, were published in the Astronomical Journal.
Minima are small asteroids that are temporarily captured in Earth’s orbit before being launched into space.
Grigori Fedorets, of Queen’s Astrophysics Research Center – who led the multi-telescope observation campaign, described the sighting of the minimaon on February 15 as a “rare treat for astronomers”.
A global effort led by Queen’s astronomer was launched to compare it with the results recorded on the only other minimaon to confirm its status.
It is thought that 2020’s CD3 could have entered Earth’s orbit several years ago, but was only visible by powerful telescopes as it exited the Earth-Moon system, which it left on March 7.
“The February discovery was significant as the only other documented minimaon astronomers were recorded in 2006, spending about a year in orbit around Earth,” Fedorets said.
“The asteroid 2020 CD3 has been a companion of the Earth for a longer time than the previous minimaon and we were able to calculate its orbit and study it in depth enough to derive its physical properties and rotation period, showing that it was a natural and not an artificial body like a dead satellite.
“Several powerful telescopes from around the world were used for the study, including those in Hawaii and La Palma, as well as that of Arizona.
“Through the observations our group confirmed that it is a silicate fragment of a larger body. We also calculated that it was about 13,000 km from Earth at its closest approach and somewhere between 1 m and 1.5 m in diameter, about the size of a small car. “
The research study, which involved 23 researchers from 14 academic institutions in seven countries, indicates that more minimions will be discovered.
“Calculations updated from our latest research estimate that we will be able to find several minimaons over the next decade. Projects such as the Vera C. Rubin Observatory’s Legacy Survey of Space and Time, which will use the world’s largest digital camera, will help astronomers. to record them and learn more about the solar system, “Fedorets said.
He also speculated that a space expedition to a minimum is possible within the next decade.
“Perhaps the most exciting thing about the minimions is that they get very close to Earth and spend a significant amount of time in its vicinity,” he said.
“This would make them exceptional targets for space missions.
“This could give us an amazing view of these one- to 10-meter objects that we know so little about because until now they have been so rare.
“This could help us understand the connection between asteroids and meteorites, which is one of the fundamental questions in planetology.”
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