Have you ever wanted to mention part of the name? solar system? Well, here’s your chance: A new contest will let one lucky participant name one of Earth’s “quasi-moons.”
Anyone can submit a possible name for our planet’s small, temporary satellite for free – and we can show you how.
Quasi-moons, also called quasi-satellites, are objects that orbit close to a planet around the sun. At first it appears that a quasi-moon is orbiting its planetary companion. In reality, however, they only have a similar trajectory and the same turnover rate the sun, meaning they are constantly near the planet, but do not orbit it. This association is only temporary because quasi-moons are never captured by their partner’s gravity and eventually fall out of sync with them.
Earth has seven known quasi-moons, and that’s all of them asteroidsaccording to The planetary society. Several of these temporary satellites have been discovered in recent years, such as 2023 FW13 – the most recently discovered quasi-moon, which first spotted in March last year. And so far only one of Earth’s quasi-moons is Kamo’oalewaofficially appointed.
Quasi-moons are not to be confused with mini-moons, which are small bodies that do orbit the Earth, but only for short periods of time (less than a year on average) before escaping our planet’s gravity.
Astronomers are interested in both quasi-moons and mini-moons because these space rocks are among the most easily accessible asteroids on Earth. prime targets for asteroid sample collection missions. Some scientists also believe that these temporary satellites can be used as stepping stones for interplanetary travel.
Related: Undiscovered additional moons may orbit Earth. Can they help us become an interplanetary species?
In the “Name a Quasi-Moon!” competition, jointly hosted by the Radiolab Podcast and the International Astronomical Union (IAU), members of the public can submit potential names for 2004’s GU9, also known as asteroid 164207, which became Earth’s first known quasi-moon when it was discovered 20 years ago. This space rock is less than 1,000 meters wide and will likely travel past Earth for up to 2,600, according to a Study from 2010.
The idea to finally name this quasi-moon was first mooted by Radiolab after the podcast helped successfully name Venus’s only known quasi-moon, Zoozve, in February, after co- presenter Latif Nasser a typo of the asteroid’s name on a map of the solar system.
“I had so much fun helping to name the quasi-moon of Venus [Zoozve] that I wanted the whole world to have the same opportunity,” Nasser said in an interview IAU statement. “I can’t wait to hear the names people come up with for our weird rock star neighbor.”
How to enter
Anyone over the age of 18 can enter the new competition from anywhere in the world by entering a name in a online form. However, there are a few rules and additional considerations to keep in mind before entering.
First, proposed names must have mythological origins, meaning they must come from a character or object from any mythology. Second, names can be up to 16 characters long and written in the Latin alphabet – the same 26 letters used in English (AZ).
You can’t use it either names already given to space objects, or add words with political or military affiliations. According to him, anything related to creation myths, the Trojan War described in Homer’s ‘Iliad’ or Amazon warriors from Greek poems is also off-limits. Radio labas such names are reserved for objects in the outer solar system.
To submit a name, you must write a short citation (maximum 360 words) explaining what the name means. This will be included in the IAU’s official naming announcement when the competition concludes.
You can also write a longer statement (maximum 1,500 words) describing why you chose the name and why it should win.
Entries open June 1 and can be submitted until September 30. The judges will select their 10 favorite potential names, which will then be put to a public vote in November. The winning name is expected to be announced in January 2025.