Asteroid Flying Past Earth at High Speed Today Measuring 180 Feet
NASA has utilized ground-based telescopes such as Pans-STARRS1 in Maui, Hawaii and the Catalina Sky Survey in Tucson, Arizona to conduct surveys that have identified numerous near-Earth objects. Additionally, the space-based telescope NEOWISE has identified hundreds more by scanning the skies using near-infrared wavelengths of light from its polar orbit around Earth. To gather accurate information about the asteroid’s trajectory and features, NASA employs its ground-based radar.
With such advanced technology, NASA has now issued a warning about an asteroid that is scheduled to pass Earth today.
About asteroid 2023 HF1
The asteroid, named Asteroid 2023 HF1, is headed for a close encounter with Earth today, June 21. Wondering how big it is? NASA has revealed that this asteroid is almost the size of an airplane, measuring 180 feet across. Its first close approach to Earth in recorded history was on June 26, 1980, when it passed the planet at a distance of 4.8 million kilometers. After today, the asteroid will come close to Earth on June 14, 2050!
The asteroid was discovered by NASA’s Defense Coordination Office (PDCO), which is responsible for monitoring the skies and observing various Near-Earth Objects (NEOs).
Asteroid 2018 KR is expected to make its closest approach to the planet at a distance of 4.7 million kilometers today at a speed of 15,727 kilometers per hour, according to NASA. It belongs to the group of Apollo asteroids, which are Earth-passing space rocks with semi-major axes larger than Earth’s. They are named after the Apollo asteroid of 1862, which was discovered by German astronomer Karl Reinmuth in the 1930s.
How NASA Tracks an Asteroid – The Process Explained
As NASA’s telescopes track a new Near-Earth Asteroid (NEA), astronomers measure the asteroid’s observed positions in the sky and report them to the Minor Planet Center. The Center for Near-Earth Object Studies (CNEOS) then uses this information to determine the asteroid’s most likely orbit around the Sun, according to NASA.
NASA’s new Sentry II uses a new algorithm and picks random points from the entire uncertainty range to estimate whether an impact is possible and narrow down where the actual orbit might be. This allows the Sentry-II to be reset for very low probability scenarios.
