NASA Reveals Details of Close Approach of Apollo Group Asteroid to Earth
According to the Center for Near-Earth Object Studies (CNEOS), an asteroid named Asteroid 2023 XY is expected to come close to Earth today, December 7. NASA’s telescopes track new Near-Earth Asteroids (NEAs) and report their observed positions to the Minor Planet Center. The Center for Near-Earth Object Studies (CNEOS) then uses this data to calculate the asteroid’s probable orbit around the Sun. Through this process, information about Asteroid 2023 XY, including its speed, size, and distance of approach, can be determined.
Asteroid 2023 XY: Details
This near-Earth space rock is expected to pass the Earth at a distance of only 5.5 million kilometers and at a speed of 29,840 kilometers per hour, which is much faster than Intercontinental Ballistic Missiles (ICBM)! It is important to note that although it has been called a near-Earth asteroid due to its close flyby distance, it is not expected to actually impact the planet.
NASA reveals that it belongs to Apollo’s group of Near-Earth Asteroids, which are space rocks passing through Earth. These asteroids are named after the huge 1862 Apollo asteroid discovered by German astronomer Karl Reinmuth in the 1930s.
How big is the asteroid?
NASA has not designated asteroid 2023 XY as a potentially hazardous asteroid. Only celestial bodies longer than 492 feet that pass Earth closer than 7.5 million kilometers are defined as such, and asteroid 2023 XY does not meet one of those requirements. Asteroid 2023 XY measures nearly 65 feet across, making it almost the size of an airplane.
According to NASA, asteroid 2023 XY has not passed by Earth before, and this is its first close approach. After today, this Apollo group asteroid is not expected to pass by the planet anytime in the near future.
