A small asteroid the size of a bus will make an extremely close approach to Earth on Thursday, passing within just 56,000 miles of the Earth. No one was aware that it was coming.
The asteroid is expected to pass safely by our planet according to calculations.
The Panoramic Survey Telescope and Rapid Response System is a system of cameras and telescopes based in Hawaii with the primary goal of detecting near- Earth objects. The space rock was estimated to be between 18 and 41 feet wide by researchers on July 4th.
There are asteroids that are weird.
According to Live Science's sister site Space, the size of the asteroid doesn't fit with NASA's criteria for a "potentially hazardous asteroid." It is too small to be considered a threat to Earth.
The Virtual Telescope Project will stream the asteroid's flyby from their telescope in Rome on July 6 at 4pm. The sun rises at 08:20 UTC. Clicking over to the Virtual Telescope Project website will allow you to join in.
This one is monitored by NASA and other agencies. If the trajectory of some large asteroids changes, they could prove dangerous.
The Double Asteroid Redirection Test will slam into the Dimorphos asteroid in the fall of 2022. The collision won't destroy the asteroid, but it may change the space rock's path slightly. Should an asteroid pose an imminent threat to our planet, the mission will test the viability of asteroid deflection.
It was originally published on Live Science
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