Here's what to know about our new, temporary celestial neighbor. Earth has a large gravitational pull. So it's not uncommon for objects flying through space to be attracted to it or get caught up in an orbit — at which point they earn status as miniature moons. The same happens with objects purposefully placed in space, such as satellites.

Earth will grab itself another moon this month, but only briefly. The "mini-moon" in the form of asteroid 2024 PT5 will stick around for just two months.