An asteroid nearly as large as the Golden Gate Bridge is expected to pass beyond Earth later this month.
It will be the largest and fastest asteroid to travel through our space this year, but it will not come close enough to cause great concern.
The asteroid (FO32 2001) is smaller than the last major one about a year ago to take a close step, but it will be three times closer and much faster, NASA said in a statement.
It measures about 1,300 to 2,230 feet wide and is expected to pass through Earth (albeit 1.25 million miles away) on March 21. The unusually fast rock will travel 77,000 mph (i.e., 21 miles per second).
In fact, it is close enough to be officially considered an “near-Earth” asteroid that is expected to give scientists a good look at a piece of rock that existed at the dawn of the universe.
“This is the most anticipated approach in 2021 for any moderately large asteroid, where ‘moderately large’ means at least several hundred meters,” Paul Chodas, director of the Center for Object Studies at CBS News, told CBS News. Earth Close to Earth.
Outdoor space fans could only zoom in with a telescope in the back garden.
According to EarthSky, observers using telescopes 8 inches or larger could detect the asteroid laying in front of the stars.
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