Asteroids today: You might think asteroids are just rocks floating in space, but it turns out they can also pose a threat to Earth. Thanks to their close contact with asteroids, NASA, ESA and other space agencies have developed technology to track these space rocks in their orbits and even deflect them if potential impact scenarios develop. Using its technology, NASA has now revealed the asteroid that is expected to pass Earth today, January 2. Learn all about this asteroid’s close approach today.
Asteroid 2023 YR: Speed, Size, Distance and More
According to the Center for Near Earth Object Studies (CNEOS), the asteroid, named Asteroid 2023 YR, is expected to pass Earth today at a distance of around 1.7 million kilometers. It is already flying towards Earth in orbit at a speed of 44,002 kilometers per hour, even faster than an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM)! This space rock is included in the Apollo group of near-Earth asteroids, namely space rocks that intersect the Earth with their semi-major axis being larger than the Earth’s axis.
It belongs to the Athena asteroid group, namely near-Earth asteroids (NEA) that cross the Earth and whose semimajor axis is smaller than the Earth’s axis. Their name comes from the asteroid 2062 Athena, and the first planet of this type was discovered by American astronomer Eleanor Helin at the Palomar Observatory on January 7, 1976.
According to NASA, this is not the first time the asteroid 2023 YR has approached Earth. It first passed the planet on September 11, 1991, at a distance of about 14 million kilometers. After today, it will pass this planet at a distance of 59 million kilometers on September 11, 2029 with a distance of approximately 15 million kilometers.
How big is it?
Asteroid 2023 YR is almost the size of an airplane and almost 50 meters wide! However, the object has not been classified as a potentially dangerous object and does not pose a threat to Earth.
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2024-01-02 10:15:39
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