It looks like you're using an Ad Blocker.
Please white-list or disable AboveTopSecret.com in your ad-blocking tool.
Thank you.
Some features of ATS will be disabled while you continue to use an ad-blocker.
It's not quite another moon, but Earth is currently being orbited by an artificial satellite that reminds astronomers of... an empty trash bag.
The Asteroid Terrestrial-impact Last Alert System (ATLAS) telescope in Haleakala, Hawaii, first spotted it Friday. The object now has the designation "A10bMLz," which is both unimpressive for an Earth satellite and yet not bad for something reminiscent of a plastic bag.
Astronomers have spotted "empty trash bags" before, but this one has an unusual orbit that brings it within 600 km (373 miles) of Earth's surface at its closest and takes it 1.4 times the distance to the moon at its farthest point. Similar objects have typically kept much closer to Earth.
The object does not have a lot of mass and it comes within 373 miles of Earth, why doesn't Earths gravity capture it and keep it close?
astronomers have never before seen an object like it orbiting so far out
originally posted by: DexterRiley
I think it's a body bag that contains the remains of Jimmy Hoffa.
That's my theory and I'm sticking with it...
/jk
-dex
originally posted by: LookingAtMars
a reply to: eriktheawful
I will have to look at the Kerbal Space Program, thanks. How would it get into an orbit like that if it is just junk from a rocket launch?
astronomers have never before seen an object like it orbiting so far out
originally posted by: wildespace
My money is on one of the numerous Chinese launches to the Moon, such as the Chang'e 4 relay satelliite, which was launched to the Earth-Moon L2 point: en.wikipedia.org...