Peter Carril/ESA
Example of a mini-lua
About half a dozen moon fragments can orbit the earth at any time before moving to surround the sun. However, the small size and rapid pace of the mini-luas make it difficult to detect.
When objects collide with the moon, they throw a shower of material, some of which can escape to space.
Most of the lunar material falls into orbit around the sun, more attractive from the gravitational point of view.
However, some of the debris can occasionally be pulled to an orbit around the earth before circulating the sun – explain the researchers in a study to be in the September issue of the magazine Icarus.
It is “like a ballroom dance, where partners change regularly and sometimes leave the dance floor for a while,” exemplified the investigation leader, Robert Nedickaresearcher at the University of Hawaii, in statements to.
Maybe 6.5 pieces of the moon
Although the international astronomical union does not have an official definition, previous research has suggested that a mini-bltus could be an object that is at least temporarily linked to Earth, makes at least one revolution of the planet and is closer than about four times the soil distance of her orbit.
As mini-wide can come from any part of the solar system.
Jedicke and his colleagues have decided to calculate the number of mini-luas they could exist.
Based on simulations of the behavior of moon particles, they found that many of the particles thrown into space could be captured, at least temporarily, by the earth, and about one fifth of them could become mini-talls.
New discoveries nominally predict that 6.5 born satellites on the moon may be surround Terra from every time.
Individual objects are changeable. That is, if they could be counted today and again in a year, some would be new objects.
This is because “a typical mini-blua revolves around the earth for an average of about nine months and these mini-luas are constantly replenished with the material that travels in an orbit similar to that of Earth”-explained Jedicke.
However, Jedicke warned that the uncertaintyin the counting of these objects, it is “gigantic. There are many orders of magnitude. ”
“If there were so many [objectos temporariamente ligados]telescopic surveys would probably detect more of them, ”said Jedicke.“ So Nominal forecast is almost wrong. It’s science“He shot.
