<Tab/>The moon is the most recognizable object in the night sky. The dictionary describes the moon as the Earth's only natural satellite as well as the closest astronomical object to us. The reason the dictionary calls it a natural satellite is because it's a naturally occurring celestial body that orbits our planet versus a manmade object placed into orbit around Earth in order to relay communications signals or transmit scientific …showed first 75 words of 612 total…

…showed last 75 words of 612 total…counts of moons around the planet, since there may be dozens of unknown asteroids circling our planet in temporary or permanent orbits due to gravitational balance points. Cruithne takes 770 years to complete its horseshoe orbit. Every 385 years, it comes to its closest point to Earth, some 9.3 million miles (15 million kilometers) away and its next close approach to Earth comes in 2285. Therefore, the Moon may not be the only natural satellite in the orbit around earth.