NASA reveals speed and other details of 130-foot asteroid set to approach Earth as close as 1.5 million kilometers
NASA has classified asteroids into three main types based on their composition: C-type, S-type, and M-type. C-type asteroids, rich in carbon, are the most abundant, while S-type asteroids, consisting mainly of silicate minerals, are less common. M-type asteroids, primarily composed of metal, are the least frequent. Today, January 18, an asteroid with an unknown composition is expected to pass by Earth. Learn more about this near encounter.
Asteroid 2024 AP2: Details
Asteroid 2024 AP2 is expected to pass Earth at a distance of only 1.5 million kilometers and at a speed of 21189 kilometers per hour, which is almost as fast as an intercontinental ballistic missile (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.
It belongs to the group of Aten asteroids, which are Earth-crossing Near-Earth Asteroids (NEAs) with semi-major axes smaller than Earth’s. They are named after the asteroid 2062 Ate, and the first of their kind was discovered by American astronomer Eleanor Helin at the Palomar Observatory on January 7, 1976.
How big is the asteroid?
NASA has not designated Asteroid 2024 AP2 as a potentially hazardous asteroid. Only celestial bodies larger than 492 feet that pass Earth closer than 7.5 million kilometers are defined as such, and asteroid 2024 AP2 does not meet one of those requirements. Asteroid 2024 AP2 measures nearly 130 feet across, making it almost the size of an airplane.
According to NASA, this is not Asteroid 2024 AP2’s first close approach to Earth. The first time it approached the planet was on January 18, 1910, when it passed at a distance of about 1.1 million kilometers. After today, it will pass the Earth again on January 8, 2025, at a distance of almost 48 million kilometers.
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