Discovering the False Moon That Has Been Following Earth Since 100 BC

JAKARTA – Recently astronomers realized there was a almost moon or the false moon that has followed the earth around the sun since 100 BC. The celestial body is named 2023 FW13, approximately 14 million kilometers from Earth. It was first discovered last March using the famous Pan-STARRS observatory in Hawaii.

Scientists first saw the asteroid circle the earth, which means it is the second moon. Upon further inspection, it was discovered that the object was actually orbiting the Sun which made this asteroid a fake Moon.

As reported by Sky and Telescope, the boulder coincidentally traveled the same path and speed as planet Earth around the Sun. It was revealed that the false moon had been around the sun for approximately 2,121 years.

This is the question of all astronomy lovers, because this is beyond prediction. Finally, Alan Harris, a scientist specializing in near-Earth objects at the Space Science Institute, says the Earth basically plays no part in their motion.

“It is not at all related to the earth by chance and this is what makes 2023 FW13 nicknamed a quasi-moon, aka a false moon,” said Harris.

Usually a fake Moon follows Earth for only a few decades. However, 2023 FW13 is very different because astronomers calculate that the asteroid has been in the vicinity of our planet since 100 BC, which is the year of birth of Julius Cesar, a former Roman dictator.

Other telescopes have also confirmed the existence of the asteroid. According to Space.com and Minor Planet Center at the International Astronomical Union, officially registered the false moon as a known object last April.

The asteroid is about 20 meters long and keeps its distance from planet Earth, exactly nine million miles at the closest point of its path. For reference, the Moon as we all know it is about 238,855 miles away. Therefore, according to Harris, it is unlikely that the fake moon will crash into the earth.

“The good news is that such an orbit does not result in a sudden impact trajectory,” he explained.

This finding is not the first, as in 2016 the Pan-STARRS observatory discovered that the rocky satellite could be a fragment of our original moon or a large satellite that can be seen in the sky.