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Have you ever wanted to name a part of thesolar system ? Well now ’s your luck : A Modern competition will let a lucky participant name one of Earth ’s " quasi - moons . "
Anybody can submit a possible name for our major planet ’s lilliputian , temporary satellite for free — and we can show you how .
Quasi-moons are asteroids that temporarily orbit the sun alongside Earth but do not properly orbit our planet.
Quasi - moons , also known as quasi - satellite , are object that orbit the sun closely alongside a satellite . A quasi - moon may initially seem to be orbiting its planetary companion . However , in realness , they just have a similar trajectory and orbital speeding aroundthe sun , which means they are always near the planet but not orbiting it . This association is only temporary because quasi - moons are never captured by their partner ’s gravity and finally fall out of sync with them .
Earth has seven known quasi - moons , which are allasteroids , allot toThe Planetary Society . Several of these irregular satellite have been uncovered in the last few years , such as 2023 FW13 — the most recently distinguish quasi - moon , which wasfirst discern in March last yr . And so far , only one of Earth ’s quasi - moon , Kamo’oalewa , has been formally named .
Quasi - moons should not be confound with minimoons , which are small organic structure that do orb Earth , but only for unforesightful periods — less than a class on average — before break loose our planet ’s gravitational pull .
Earth’s quasi-moons only temporarily orbit the sun in sync with our planet and will eventually part ways with us forever.
stargazer are interested in both quasi - moons and minimoons because these infinite rocks are some of the most well accessible asteroids from Earth , score themprime targets for military mission to pull in asteroid samples . Some scientists also conceive that these temporary satellites could be used asstepping stones for interplanetary travel .
Related : Undiscovered extra moons may revolve Earth . Could they help us become an interplanetary species ?
In the " Name a Quasi Moon ! " contest , which is being run jointly by the Radiolab podcast and the International Astronomical Union ( IAU ) , members of the world can pass on potential name for 2004 GU9 , also know as asteroid 164207 , which became Earth ’s first known quasi - moonshine when it was key 20 years ago . This space rock is less than 3,300 foot ( 1,000 meters ) astray and will belike go alongside Earth until 2600 , harmonise to a2010 study .
The idea to eventually name this quasi - moon was first put forward by Radiolab after the podcast helped to successfully name Venus ' only known quasi - moon , Zoozve , in February after co - host Latif Nasser spotted atypo of the asteroid ’s name in a solar system mathematical function .
" I had so much playfulness helping to name Venus ’s quasi - moon [ Zoozve ] that I wanted the whole world to get that same chance , " Nasser pronounce in anIAU statement . " I ca n’t await to pick up the name people get up with for our weirdo rockstar neighbour . "
How to enter
Anyone over 18 yr one-time can enter the new contest from anywhere around the globe by submitting a name in anonline form . However , there are a few rules and additional considerations to take into account before you put down .
First , hint names must have a mythological origin , meaning they must be from a character or aim in any mythology . Second , public figure must be a maximum of 16 character reference long and spell using the Latin rudiment — the same 26 letters used in English ( A - Z ) .
You also can not usenames already give to space objects , or include any language with political or military affiliation . Anything related to origination myth , the Trojan War described in Homer ’s " Iliad " or Amazonian warriors from Greek poems is also off - limits , accord toRadiolab , as such names are reserved for outersolar systemobjects .
— 10 out - of - this - world solar organization discovery made in 2023
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To submit a name , you must write a short citation ( maximal 360 words ) explaining what the name means . This will be included in the IAU ’s official naming announcement when the rival has reason out .
you may also write a longer statement ( maximum 1,500 words ) to describe why you have foot the name and why it should win .
submission opened on June 1 and can be made until Sept. 30 . Judges will select their 10 preferred likely name , which will then be put to a public vote in November . The gain name is expected to be announced in January 2025 .
