A group of Hungarian astronomers has discovered the existence of three moons orbiting Earth. These moons are not made of solid matter but of dust, and they orbit at a distance of approximately 250,000 miles, which is nearly the same as the Moon's distance from Earth.
The discovery of two of these moons, known as Kordylewski dust clouds, was first made in 1961 by Polish astronomer Kazimierz Kordylewski. Kordylewski speculated that these dust clouds could be orbiting Earth near the Lagrange points L4 and L5, which are points in space where the gravitational forces of Earth and the Moon balance out.
Further investigation has revealed that these dust clouds are not solid objects but are instead "fake satellites" that orbit Earth. Despite being as close to Earth as the Moon, they have been largely overlooked by astronomers until now.
Judit SlÃz-Balogh, an astronomer at Eötvös Loránd University in Hungary and co-author of the study, described the Kordylewski dust clouds as "two of the toughest objects to find." She added that confirming the existence of these dusty pseudo-satellites in Earth's orbit alongside the Moon is intriguing.
Specialists explain that these elusive satellite clouds have remained undetected for a long time due to their extremely faint nature. However, with the sun's reflection, these dust clouds can briefly become visible. To detect the dispersed light reflecting off individual particles within the dust clouds, scientists utilized advanced polarizing filters on their cameras during their study.
Although Hungarian researchers have proven the existence of two additional moons orbiting the Earth, some space experts remain skeptical about the existence of these unusual dust clouds, believing them to be a passing occurrence. They argue that the massive dust clouds observed by astronomers in this study may quickly dissipate due to gravitational forces from other planets or solar winds.
It is not uncommon for new space studies to challenge humanity's understanding of the solar system. Recently, some astronomers hypothesized that a rogue space planet, possibly Planet Nine, may be hiding beyond Neptune in the solar system. The researchers also suggested that the space where Planet Nine may exist is too dark, which could explain why current Earth-based observatories are struggling to locate this celestial body.
No comments