NEED TO KNOW<\/p>\n
A new “quasi-moon” named 2025 PN7 has been discovered, according to a newly-released paper<\/p>\n
Scientists out of a Hawaii observatory reportedly discovered the new quasi-moon on Aug. 29<\/p>\n
It is believed that the new moon will stick around for another 60 years<\/p>\n
A new \u201cquasi-moon\u201d has been found near Earth, but it won\u2019t stick around for long.<\/p>\n
The asteroid, named 2025 PN7, will join Earth in orbit until 2083, according to a paper published last month in IOP Science<\/a>.<\/p>\n Scientists out of the Pan-STARRs observatory in Hawaii discovered the new quasi-moon on Aug. 29, according to CNN<\/a> and ABC News<\/a>. It is believed that PN7 has been a quasi-moon for an estimated 60 years.<\/p>\n Carlos de la Fuentes, astronomer at the Complutense University of Madrid, who co-authored the study, said there were \u201cno real hints about its origins, only speculations,\u201d according to USA Today<\/a>.<\/p>\n Earth\u2019s quasi-moons are not actually moons, but asteroids, according to The Planetary Society<\/a>. They are only temporary, and will eventually leave Earth\u2019s orbit.<\/p>\n There are six other known quasi-satellites near the planet, according to astrophysicists with Northeastern University<\/a>. PN7 is the seventh.<\/p>\n Northeastern University astrophysicist Jonathan Blazek said the new quasi-moon is \u201croughly the size of a small office building,\u201d according to Northeastern Global News. The moon, he added, is \u201cabout a quadrillion times more massive.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cIn the long term, the orbits will drift, and the quasi-moons will move away,\u201d Blazek said.<\/p>\n