Earth to Have Close Encounter with Asteroid 2020 PN1 Today

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) explains that despite being millions of kilometers away in space, asteroids are still tracked due to their potential threat of colliding with Earth and their ability to unveil hidden space secrets. Although the majority of asteroids reside in the main asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter, they frequently come close to Earth, passing by at relatively short distances.

This can happen if an asteroid is knocked off course by the gravitational pull of a large planet. Their orbits can also bring them very close to Earth, so studying and tracking them is essential.

NASA has now tracked the asteroid, whose orbit will bring it close to Earth today, August 3rd. Know the details of this close encounter.

Asteroid 2020 PN1

NASA monitors asteroids, comets, and other Near Earth Objects (NEOs) for possible close approaches that could threaten Earth. The space agency has issued a warning about an asteroid that will come very close to Earth today, August 3. According to the details, the asteroid named Asteroid 2020 PN1 will pass the Earth at a distance of up to about 4.1 million kilometers. While not a planet killer, this asteroid is still huge, with an estimated width of 90 feet. That makes it almost the size of an airplane!

Not only does the asteroid pass the earth very close, but it is also hurtling towards us at blistering speed. NASA has revealed that asteroid 2020 PN1 is approaching Earth at a speed of 17,425 kilometers per hour.

Other details

It belongs to Apollo’s group of Near-Earth Asteroids, which are Earth-passing space rocks with semi-major axes larger than Earth’s. These asteroids are named after the huge 1862 Apollo asteroid discovered by German astronomer Karl Reinmuth in the 1930s.

How you can help NASA track asteroids

If you’re an aspiring astronomer and want to be an asteroid hunter, you can help NASA find and track asteroids in space! NASA’s new Daily Minor Planet Project allows astronomers and sky watchers to help discover new asteroids and track them in data sets. To capture asteroids, the Daily Minor Project uses the NASA-funded Catalina Sky Survey at the University of Arizona, which takes nearly 1,000 images each night. Because of this number, NASA scientists are unable to study these images.

According to NASA, “You decide whether the spots of light in the images look like real celestial bodies or are instead false observations caused by inconveniently timed background star ‘flashes.'” After viewing the image, all you have to do is click the yes or no button and add a comment if necessary before as you go to the next picture.