New contest lets you name Earth's 1st 'quasi-moon' for free. Here's how to enter.

Have you ever wanted to name a part of the solar system? Well now's your chance: A new contest will let a lucky participant name one of Earth's "quasi-moons."  

Anybody can submit a potential name for our planet's tiny, temporary satellite for free — and we can show you how.

Quasi-moons, also known as quasi-satellites, are objects that orbit the sun closely alongside a planet. A quasi-moon may initially appear to be orbiting its planetary companion. However, in reality, they merely have a similar trajectory and orbital speed around the sun, which means they are constantly near the planet but not orbiting it. This association is only temporary because quasi-moons are never captured by their partner's gravity and eventually fall out of sync with them.

Earth has seven known quasi-moons, which are all asteroids, according to The Planetary Society. Several of these temporary satellites have been uncovered in the last few years, such as 2023 FW13 — the most recently discovered quasi-moon, which was first spotted in March last year. And so far, only one of Earth's quasi-moons, Kamo'oalewa, has been officially named.

Quasi-moons should not be confused with minimoons, which are small bodies that do orbit Earth, but only for short periods — less than a year on average — before escaping our planet's gravitational pull. 

Astronomers are interested in both quasi-moons and minimoons because these space rocks are some of the most easily accessible asteroids from Earth, making them prime targets for missions to collect asteroid samples. Some scientists also believe that these temporary satellites could be used as stepping stones for interplanetary Travel.

Related: Undiscovered extra moons may orbit Earth. Could they help us become an interplanetary species?