[ad_1]
The asteroid, nicknamed by NASA Asteroid 2019 AG3, will make the so-called "approaching Earth" in the wee hours of the morning. NASA scientists at the California Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) tracked the asteroid until a flyby at 2:18 GMT. The astonishing discovery comes just a month after the asteroid was first discovered by radars on December 12, 2018. NASA does not expect space rockets to hit the Earth anytime soon, but the asteroid's imposing size is a good reason to track it.
JPL estimates that Asteroid AG3 measures something in the range of 210 feet to 459 feet (64 to 140 m) in diameter.
Such a large asteroid is about twice the wingspan of a Boeing 747.
Asteroids measuring 460 feet (140m) in diameter are considered "Potentially Hazardous Asteroids" (PHAs) approaching Earth sufficiently.
The largest known PHA is the gigantic Apollo asteroid, which is believed to measure approximately 4.3 miles in diameter (7 km).
A NASA report on the dangers of asteroids says: "Near-Earth objects larger than 140 meters have the potential to inflict severe damage on entire regions or continents.
READ MORE: Rogue asteroids can clean up life on Earth, warns Stephen Hawking
"Such objects would reach Earth with a minimum energy of more than 60 megatons of TNT, which is more than the most powerful nuclear device ever tested.
"Fortunately, they are much less common and are easier to detect and track than near Earth objects.
"After nearly two decades of searching, NASA and its partners have cataloged about a third of the estimated 25,000 NEAs that are at least 140 meters."
Fortunately, Asteroid AG3 is expected to lose the Earth by more than 3 million miles (4.9 million km).
READ MORE: Asteroids of Neptune and Jupiter could destroy Earth
NASA predicts that AG3 will approach our home world tomorrow, at a distance of approximately 0.03303 astronomical units (au).
An astronomical unit measures approximately 93 million miles (149.6 million km) – the distance from Earth to the Sun.
Asteroid AG3 will drastically reduce that distance to only 3.07 million miles (4.9 million km) tomorrow.
This is the equivalent of 12.86 Lunar Distances (LD) or 12.86 times the distance from Earth to Moon.
READ MORE: COMET DEATH will pass the earth?
An astronomical unit measures approximately 93 million miles (149.6 million km) – the distance from Earth to the Sun.
Asteroid AG3 will drastically reduce that distance to only 3.07 million miles (4.9 million km) tomorrow.
This is the equivalent of 12.86 Lunar Distances (LD) or 12.86 times the distance from Earth to Moon.
CONSULT MORE INFORMATION: Will Death COMET go through Earth?
In human terms, this may seem incredibly far, but in the cosmic range of distances, this is close contact with the space rock.
NASA said, "As they orbit the Sun, Near Earth Objects may occasionally approach Earth.
"Note that a narrow passage" astronomically can be very distant in human terms: millions or even tens of millions of miles. "
And as the asteroid flies, the asteroid will reach mind-boggling speeds of more than 32,700mph or 14.62km per second.
[ad_2]
Source link