AN enormous space rock will zip past Earth tomorrow.
Asteroid 2013 BO76 will hurtle past on Thursday at a staggering 30,000 miles per hour, according to Nasa trackers.
At up to 450 meters across, it’s roughly the same size as the Empire State Building.
Fortunately, the speedy object is expected to miss our planet by some distance.
It’ll fly by at a safe distance of around 3.1million miles, according to data on Nasa’s Near-Earth Object database.
That’s or 13 times the gap between Earth and the Moon – a near-miss in space terms.
Read our asteroid ‘close approach’ live blog for the latest news and updates…
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What is a NEO?
Nasa considers anything passing near Earth’s orbit a Near-Earth Object (NEO).
Thousands of NEOs are tracked by scientists to monitor whether they’re on a collision course with our planet.
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Nasa monitors thousands of asteroids
Nasa has its eye on nearly 28,000 known near-Earth asteroids, and discoveries of new asteroids are said to go up by their thousands each year.
On that note, Nasa is hoping to launch its Near-Earth Object (NEO) Surveyor mission in 2026.
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What is the Main Asteroid Belt?
The bulk of known asteroids orbits between Mars and Jupiter in the asteroid belt, with relatively short orbits.
There are between 1.1 and 1.9million asteroids bigger than one kilometer (0.6 miles) in diameter in the belt, as well as millions of smaller ones.
The gravity of freshly created Jupiter stopped the development of planetary bodies in this region early in the solar system’s existence, causing the tiny things to smash with one another, fragmenting them into the asteroids we see today.
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Several objects making ‘close approaches’
There are seven different space objects expected to make what Nasa calls “close approaches” this week, with this asteroid being one of them.
Thankfully, none of the asteroids being tracked by the space agency are thought to pose any real danger to us.
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When will the asteroid fly by?
According to Nasa’s Center for Near-Earth Object Studies, asteroid 2013 BO76 will make its close pass at 10.55pm ET on Thursday (2.55am Friday in UK time).
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What is considered a ‘potentially hazardous’ asteroid?
Any space object that comes within 4.65 million miles of us is considered “potentially hazardous” by cautious space organizations.
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NEO’s tracked
The asteroid has been added to Nasa’s list of upcoming “Close Approaches” even though it poses no danger to our planet.
Thousands of near-Earth objects (NEOs) are tracked to provide an early warning if they somehow shift onto a collision course with our planet.
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Close in space terms
Although the asteroid is expected to pass Earth at a safe distance of around 3.1million miles, according to data on Nasa’s Near-Earth Object database, that’s actually relatively close.
That’s the same as 13 times the gap between Earth and the Moon – a near-miss in space terms.
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How big is the asteroid?
The asteroid is up to 450 meters across.
That’s roughly the same size as the Empire State Building.
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How fast is the asteroid?
The asteroid 2013 BO76 will hurtle past on Thursday at a staggering 30,000 miles per hour (50,000 kph), according to Nasa trackers.
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How far away will the asteroid be?
The asteroid will fly by at a safe distance of around 3.1million miles, according to data on Nasa’s Near-Earth Object database.
