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University of Hawaii astronomers have confirmed that planet Earth has a faithful companion in its orbit around the sun.
In April, the Pan-STARRS telescope on Haleakala detected an asteroid, 2016 HO3, which a subsequent search in telescope archives revealed to have been visible dating back to 2011.
“It was a very interesting object because it appeared to be very close to the Earth but it appeared to be almost possibly a satellite of the Earth or a quasi-satellite of the Earth,” said Richard Wainscoat of the Institute for Astronomy.
In collaboration with NASA researchers, the astronomers determined that the asteroid circles around the Earth as it also orbits around the sun.
The asteroid is not considered a threat to Earth, according to the scientists.
