Is a chunk of the moon now orbiting the Earth?

Discovered in 2016 by Haleakala Observatory’s Pan-STARRS system, Kamo’oalewa is a near-Earth asteroid orbiting the planet. Now a new Cornell University study is attempting to answer a question long asked within the science community: Was this asteroid once part of the moon?

“If supported by such studies, Kamo’oalewa would be the first near-Earth asteroid to be recognized as a fragment of the Moon; it would be of great interest for cosmochemical study as a sample of ancient lunar material,” the study explained.

“Orbital pathways for a Lunar-Ejecta Origin of the Near-Earth Asteroid Kamo`oalewa”, by researchers Jose Daniel Castro-Cisneros, Renu Malhotra and Aaron J. Rosengren, has yet to be run through the rigorous review process of the scientific community, and the researchers encourage further related studies to corroborate their findings. All the same, the study is already making headlines.

“The existence of these outcomes lends credence to the hypothesis that Kamo’oalewa could indeed be lunar ejecta,” the study reported, noting that simulations gave credence to the possibility of the asteroid being a piece of the moon. “The launch conditions most favored for such an outcome are those with launch velocities slightly above the lunar escape velocity and launch locations from the Moon’s trailing side. We also find that Kamo’oalewa’s inclination may have been boosted by close approaches with the Earth during its horseshoe state.”

According to Science Alert, scientists initially became interested in the origins of Kamo’oalewa after it was discovered that the Earth-orbiting asteroid reflects light similarly to the moon. The asteroid’s glow comes from the presence of silicates.

If it is a moon fragment, the study claims that is was most likely broken off by a meteor.

“Considering its Earth-like orbit and its physical resemblance to lunar surface materials, we explore the hypothesis that it might have originated as a debris-fragment from a meteoroidal impact with the lunar surface,” the study reported.