ILLUSTRATION. A giant asteroid bigger than a football field passes Earth, 4 more to follow
Writer: Arif Budianto
KONTAN.CO.ID – A giant asteroid larger than a football field approaches Earth’s atmosphere. Meanwhile, four other asteroids will follow in the near future.
Recently (29/11/2021) it was reported that a giant asteroid larger than a football field will fly close to Earth’s atmosphere. Quote from ItechpostThe asteroid, dubbed 1994 WR12, has dimensions of 430 feet or 210 meters.
This is not a newly discovered asteroid, 1994 WR12 was discovered by astronomer Carolyn S. Shoemaker on November 28, 1994, thanks to the Palomar Observatory.
Due to its proximity to Earth’s atmosphere, asteroid 1994 WR 12 can reportedly be seen using a telescope by pointing it at the sky. The asteroid’s closest approach to Earth is 3,820,000 miles from the planet’s surface.
With that distance, is the 1994 WR12 asteroid dangerous?
According to experts from NASA, asteroid 1994 WR12 is not dangerous. This giant space rock will pass through Earth safely. However, the asteroid was once classified by the NEO Study Center or near-Earth object (CNEOS) Jet Propolsion Laboratory (JPL) as Earth Impact Risk.
This means that one of the asteroids they are monitoring may have a collision course with this planet Earth. However, in 2016, the asteroid was removed from the Sentry List after observations.
What if the asteroid actually hit Earth?
Still quoting from Itechpost, NASA experts believe that the impact of asteroid 1994 WR12 will produce the energy equivalent of 77 megatons of TNT. In this case, it would be 112 times more powerful than the Tsar Bomba, the largest nuclear weapon ever detonated by the Soviet Union.
Also Read: Let’s find out about Nadir Kaaba, an astronomical phenomenon that happened today, November 29
Another asteroid that follows close to Earth
According to NASA JPL, not only asteroid 1994 WR12 is approaching Earth. Four more asteroids are said to be flying close to Earth’s atmosphere.
The four asteroids are not known to be as big or close as 1994 WR12 which passed Earth recently. The following is a list of asteroids and their approximate time and closest distances.
