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Who doesn’t get awestruck by a bright full moon on a clear winter’s night? So it is no wonder that excitement is growing over the announcement that the Earth is being orbited by a second “moon” – a mini object that has been with us for about three years. The body is actually an asteroid, estimated to be just one to six metres across, that has been captured into an orbit around the Earth temporarily.
It is not the first time that this has happened, scientists estimate that it occurs regularly. Such mini-moons tend to be fleeting visitors though, as gravitational tugs from our much larger, permanent moon and the Sun make their orbit unstable. And the orbit of the Moon’s tiny cousin is indeed crazy, meaning it won’t be long before it breaks free to reclaim an independent orbit about the Sun.
Also in the news:
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The Earth currently has two moons - but they won’t look like this in the sky.
David Rothery, The Open University
Earth currently has a second moon - but it won't stay long.
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Culture + Society
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Ernest Yeboah Acheampong, University of Education
Fame changes the bonds that some African footballers have with their home communities.
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Brenda Schmahmann, University of Johannesburg; Federico Freschi, University of Otago; Lize van Robbroeck, Stellenbosch University
Art and visual culture played a significant role in building a unified Afrikaner nationalism that allowed apartheid to thrive. A new book unpacks the issue.
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Business + Economy
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Iwa Salami, University of East London
The decision by eight Francophone states to delink their common currency from France won't be without challenges.
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Michael Walden, North Carolina State University
An economist explains how a virus like COVID-19 could disrupt the US economy – and why it's too soon to freak out just yet.
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Health + Medicine
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Dominic Wilkinson, University of Oxford
If the COVID-19 outbreak becomes a pandemic, there will be many difficult ethical decisions for health services.
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Christopher Robertson, University of Arizona; Keith Joiner, University of Arizona
Air transportation unquestionably spreads disease. Should airlines be more proactive by requiring proof of vaccination? Two experts reflect on the current and former crises.
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