According to a statement from NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, an asteroid named 2024 ON, approximately 290 meters in diameter and about the size of a sports stadium, is rapidly approaching Earth. However, there’s no need to worry, as this celestial body will pass Earth at a distance of about 1 million kilometers.
Asteroid Traveling at 40,000 km/h
2024 ON, closely monitored by the Virtual Telescope Project, had previously passed close to Earth in 2013. According to data collected by NASA scientists, the next close approach is expected in 2035. This particular pass will occur on Tuesday, September 17.
The stadium-sized asteroid was detected traveling at about 40,000 km per hour earlier this month. Although this is a high speed, the asteroid poses no risk to Earth, as it will pass approximately 2.6 times farther away than the Moon’s orbit. According to The Independent, 2024 ON is considered larger than 99% of other near-Earth objects due to its size.
The first civilian spacewalk in history was successfully completed within the scope of the Polaris Dawn mission under the control of SpaceX.
Asteroids like 2024 ON frequently pass close to Earth. While not all are this large, some do pass even closer. This stadium-sized asteroid was first detected by NASA’s Near-Earth Object (NEO) Observation Program.
With the right equipment, it may be possible to observe this potentially hazardous asteroid passing well beyond the Moon’s orbit. However, its high speed makes it possible that it might go unnoticed.
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