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As a long-time science fiction fan, I love all aspects of the genre. Science fiction can cover anything from robots to time travel and anything in between that you can think of. There are no limits to what we can imagine.

I love these kinds of stories because not only can they get fascinatingly weird, but they also let us examine how people function in strange situations. Sci-fi stories can tell us a lot about ourselves, even if it’s hidden under a layer of the fantastical.

But all that aside, I also just think space phenomenon is really cool!

I grew up watching Star Trek, fascinated by people who traveled the stars every day as explorers. The series taught me about things like nebula and pulsars and supernovas and black holes and much more before we ever tackled astronomy in school. There’s so much more out there in the universe, even if we can usually see only the stars when we look up at night.

But while science fiction is, of course, fiction, sometimes it can also be based in fact. And I read a headline earlier this week that sounded like the beginning of a science fiction story, but was actually true.

Our planet is getting a second moon this year.

But only temporarily!

I was fascinated by the idea, so I had to read more. Here’s a rundown of the situation from Space.com

A tiny asteroid – called “2024 PT5” even though that’s kind of dull – will get swept into Earth’s gravity for about two months before the sun pulls it back in place. Scientists call this a “mini moon event.”

2024 PT5 is a part of the Arjuna asteroid belt, which orbits the sun in a similar path that Earth does too. Sometimes an asteroid can get close enough that it gets sucked into Earth gravitational pull, and it starts to orbit around the planet just like our regular moon does.

Since this asteroid, however, is only sticking around for two months, it won’t actually make a full loop around the Earth. One scientist interviewed by Space.com likened the phenomenon to “window shopping” since the asteroid is only briefly hanging out while passing through.

This is not the first time this has happened. Earth picked up “mini moons” in 2006 and 2020 which stuck around for more than a year. And mini moons with shorter stays – like 2024 PT5 will do this year – have been recorded in the past as well. They could happen several times a decade actually.

2024 PT5’s temporary gig as Earth’s second moon will begin on September 29 and continue until around November, then it resumes its regular orbit around the sun with the rest of the Arjuna asteroids. But, unfortunately, the asteroid is way too small to be seen by the naked eye. Binoculars and amateur telescopes won’t be helpful either. So skywatchers won’t be able to see our celestial visitor.

But professional astronomers can observe the mini moon with their high-grade telescopes, meaning that at least they’ll be able to do research on the event to share afterwards.

While this is a cool little bit of astronomy, none of this will have an effect on our regular moon. Our planet’s constant companion will rise, cross the sky, and set like it usually does.

Here are a few more interesting facts about the Earth’s moon and other moons in our solar system (also courtesy of Space.com and NASA):

The moon changes phases throughout the month, going from a “new moon” to a “full moon” and then starting the cycle over again. The phases change depending on the position of the moon, and reflected light from the sun is what illuminates it.

Our moon and its gravity are responsible for ocean tides on Earth. But while the moon plays the largest role in the tides, Earth’s rotation and gravity from the sun are also contributing factors.

The moon is drifting away from Earth by about 1.5 inches each year. Such a small amount doesn’t mean much to us now, but it’ll be noticeably different in a couple million years.

Another interesting occurrence is that the moon has “moonquakes” just like we have earthquakes down here. Those can be caused by meteor impacts, temperature changes, and Earth’s gravity.

Other planets in our solar system have moons too. NASA says that are 293 in total right now. Mars has two, Pluto has five, Neptune has 16, Uranus has 28, and Jupiter has 95, and Saturn has a whopping 146.

Jupiter’s largest moons were first discovered by astronomer Galileo Galilei in 1610. The planet’s four largest and most famous moons are Ganymede, Callisto, Io, and Europa.

Ganymede is the largest moon in our whole solar system actually. So large that it’s bigger than even Mercury and Pluto! It also has its own magnetic field, which causes auroras, just like we have on Earth too. Io is known for its volcanoes. So many, in fact, that it’s the most volcanically active world in our solar system. Europa has a frozen surface of ice sitting on top of a large saltwater ocean.

Saturn also has a moon larger than Mercury – it’s appropriately called Titan – but it also has a lot of smaller ones as well. Like you might have noticed with Jupiter’s moons, a lot of Saturn’s have names that come from mythology, such as Prometheus, Pandora, Janus, Atlas, and many more.

To me, the most interesting fact about Saturn’s moons is that the weather on Titan is sometimes “cloudy with a chance of methane rain.” Yikes!

Science fiction might test the limits of our imagination, but it’s certainly no substitute for the wonders of the real universe outside our doorstep.

Holly Taylor is a Staff Writer for Roanoke-Chowan Publications. Contact her at holly.taylor@r-cnews.com or 252-332-7206.