Astronomers just found a second moon near Earth: It’s been tagging along since the 1960s

Astronomers have identified an unusual “quasi-moon” orbiting near Earth. The celestial object, named 2025 PN7, follows a path around the Sun similar to Earth’s and has remained surprisingly close to our planet. Recent research suggests this mysterious asteroid may have been quietly accompanying Earth for roughly six decades, and will continue to do so until 2083, provided its current orbit holds.

The discovery, published in the Research Notes of the American Astronomical Society, came thanks to Hawaii’s Pan-STARRS Observatory on August 29, 2025. Earlier images confirmed that 2025 PN7 has maintained a stable orbit tied to Earth for decades. “We can only detect it with current telescopes when it comes close to our planet, as it did this summer. Its visibility windows are rare,” explained Carlos de la Fuente Marcos, a researcher at Complutense University of Madrid and lead author of the study.

Mini-moons vs. quasi-moons

Unlike temporary mini-moons such as 2024 PT5, which orbit Earth for only short periods, quasi-moons remain in our planet’s vicinity permanently while actually orbiting the Sun. According to NASA, 2025 PN7 averages about 239,000 miles from Earth and can approach as close as 186,000 miles. This makes it one of the few known quasi-moons, alongside Kamoʻoalewa, the target of China’s Tianwen-2 mission launched in May 2025.

A rocky mystery

The asteroid’s composition is still unknown. “Based on what little we know, it’s very likely a natural rocky object. Occasionally, old satellites or rocket debris can end up in similar orbits, but we can usually distinguish natural objects from artificial ones,” said astrophysicist Teddy Kareta of Villanova University.

Researchers caution that further studies are needed to uncover the true origin of 2025 PN7. One possibility under consideration is that it could be a fragment of the Moon, though future analyses will be necessary to confirm its nature.

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