An asteroid that orbited near Earth for a few months as a mini-moon may be a chunk of the moon that was blasted off by an impact thousands of years ago.

Astronomers now suggest that the small celestial body, initially dubbed Earth’s “mini-moon” 2024 PT5, might be a lunar fragment. Discovered in August 2023, this 33-feet wide space rock mimics Earth’s orbit and closely resembles lunar samples.

The small near-Earth asteroid 2024 PT5 has been creating a buzz among researchers. Discovered last year with the help of a NASA-funded telescope, it is only about 33 feet across and does not pose any threat to Earth.

New research suggests that Earth's recent mini-moon might have originated as part of our actual moon long, long ago.