Asteroid watch: Building-sized asteroid set to pass Earth today by close margin, reveals NASA
NASA says as many as four asteroids passed Earth yesterday and all of them did so by close distances. The biggest of them was Asteroid 2024 BD7 which had a width of almost 140 feet, making it almost as big as an aircraft. Now, the US Space Agency has revealed that just one asteroid has been tracked in its orbit which will make its closest approach to Earth today, March 19. However, it is bigger than all of the asteroids that passed the planet yesterday! From size, speed to distance of approach, know all about this building-sized asteroid.
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NASA's Center for Near-Earth Object Studies or CNEOS has designated the oncoming asteroid as Asteroid 2024 BD7. This organization is responsible for keeping an eye on celestial objects like comets and asteroids. Such objects which pass Earth in close proximity are known as Near-Earth Objects (NEOs).
During its close approach, Asteroid 2024 BD7 will pass the planet at a distance of 7.2 million kilometers, according to NASA. It has been tracked in its orbit moving at a breakneck speed of about 36507 kilometers per hour! This is even faster than an Intercontinental Ballistic Missile (ICBM)!
NASA says that while this asteroid is much bigger in size than the ones that passed Earth yesterday, it does not pose any threat to life and property, and it is not expected to impact the surface. After studying the data, the space agency has revealed that Asteroid 2024 BD7 is 440 feet wide, which makes it nearly as big as a building!
Also Read: What are asteroids and how ESA is tracking them
It belongs to the Apollo group of Near-Earth Asteroids, which are Earth-crossing space rocks with semi-major axes larger than Earth's. These asteroids are named after the humongous 1862 Apollo asteroid, discovered by German astronomer Karl Reinmuth in the 1930s.
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