Earth two moons (Representational image)
Photo : Twitter
NASA has confirmed that Earth is no longer a one-moon planet, at least temporarily. Astronomers have discovered that a small asteroid, named 2025 PN7, is accompanying our planet in a rare orbital arrangement, earning it the nickname “Earth’s second moon.” But don’t expect to spot it lighting up the night sky anytime soon.
Despite the catchy title, 2025 PN7 is not a true moon like our familiar lunar companion. It’s a quasi-moon, a type of near-Earth asteroid that follows an orbit around the Sun very similar to Earth’s. This close tracking makes it appear, from Earth’s perspective, to loop around us, almost like a satellite.
Unlike temporary mini-moons that get briefly caught in Earth’s gravity (such as 2024 PT5, which orbited Earth for about two months last year), quasi-moons aren’t gravitationally bound to Earth. They’re more like synchronized cosmic companions, and 2025 PN7 has apparently been shadowing our planet since the 1960s.
All About Earth’s ‘Second Moon’
The asteroid was discovered by astronomers at the University of Hawaii during a routine sky survey. On August 29, 2025, the Pan-STARRS observatory, perched atop the Haleakalā volcano, first captured images of the object. It was later identified as 2025 PN7 through follow-up observations and comparisons with archival data.
Surprisingly, researchers found that this “new” moon has likely been orbiting near Earth undetected for nearly 60 years. If its current orbital path remains stable, scientists believe 2025 PN7 will remain in Earth’s cosmic neighborhood until around 2083, giving us nearly six decades of a second (quasi) moon.
Small and faint, 2025 PN7 measures about 30 meters (98 feet) in length and 19 meters (62 feet) in diameter, roughly the size of a commercial airliner. That’s also likely why it remained hidden for so long. It’s now the smallest known quasi-moon ever discovered in Earth’s orbit.
At its closest point, 2025 PN7 passes within 299,337 kilometers (about 186,000 miles) of Earth, closer than the average distance to our main Moon, which orbits at roughly 384,400 kilometers (238,855 miles).
However, it’s still far enough that it poses no threat and won’t be visible without powerful telescopes.
Can You See 2025 PN7?
Probably not, unless you’re an astronomer with access to high-powered equipment. The asteroid is too dim and too small to be seen with the naked eye. Even amateur telescopes will struggle to pick it up except during rare close passes. So while Earth technically has a second moon, it won’t be creating romantic moonlight or sparking werewolf legends anytime soon.
Only eight quasi-moons have ever been confirmed by astronomers, making 2025 PN7 part of a rare celestial club. Other notable examples include Kamo‘oalewa, which some scientists believe could be a fragment of our original Moon.