Asteroid 4 times bigger than the Empire State Building is coming closer

Asteroid 4 times bigger than the Empire State Building is coming closer

A large asteroid will pass by Earth this weekend. Fortunately, what is known as 7335 (1989 JA) will remain within a reasonable distance of 4 million km.

Image 1: Asteroid 4 times bigger than the Empire State Building is approaching
Asteroid 7335 (1989 JA) will pass by us (illustration image) – Credit: Pixabay

On a regular basis, celestial bodies approach our good old Earth. Fortunately, astronomers are keeping an eye out to estimate the potentially catastrophic impact. Last March, a bus-sized asteroid passed 7 million km from the blue planet. And this week, another celestial body will make a remarkable breakthrough, this time about 4 million km from Earth. To give you an idea, this is equal to 10 times the distance between Earth and its natural satellite, the Moon.

Named 7335 (1989 JA), it should make its way Friday, reveals NASA’s Center for the Study of Near-Earth Objects (CNEOS), whose mission is to monitor asteroids and comets that potentially threaten Earth. are giving. Concretely, it is a stony asteroid 1.8 km in diameter. It was discovered 33 years ago by astronomer Eleanor Helin of Palomar Observatory in California.

Read > Discovery: This asteroid contains the elements necessary for life

A “potentially dangerous” asteroid

Based on its enormous diameter and its proximity, NASA calls it “potentially dangerous”, This means that if its orbit changes and it ends its course on Earth it can cause huge damage. Don’t panic though, but a scenario don’t look up Not on the agenda!

According to NASA, 7335 (1989 JA) is the largest asteroid that will pass our planet this year. It is estimated to travel at a speed of about 76,000 km/h. Note that it will not return to the zone any time soon, with its next close overflight being determined no earlier than June 23, 2055. The date on which it should be farther away than it would have passed on Friday (70 times the distance between Earth and the Moon according to predictions).

If the topic appeals to you, know that the Trojan asteroid will follow Earth for more than 4,000 years.

Source: LiveScience

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