An asteroid similar to the size of the Golden Gate Bridge will pass the Earth later this month – the largest and fastest asteroid passing near our planet this year.
But don’t worry, it won’t come too close.
The asteroid, officially known by NASA as 231937 (2001 FO32), is about 1,300 to 2,230 feet wide, according to observations made by the NEOWISE team, placing it at the smaller end of the scale. An orbit time of 810 days.
The asteroid is smaller than the last famous man to take a close look at Earth, but it will be three times closer, NASA said in a statement Thursday.
2001 FO32 is expected to arrive within 1.25 million miles of Earth at 11:02 am ET on March 21, just one day after the spring equinox. That’s close enough to classify NASA as “dangerous“in its database of asteroids near Earth, a specification given when they come within about 4.65 million miles of Earth, and are more than 500 feet in diameter.
ASA / JPL-Caltech
It will move at nearly 77,000 miles per hour, or 21 miles per second – reaching the interests of scientists as one of the fastest known spacecraft to fly past Earth. The asteroid is “remarkably fast” because of its very sloping and long orbit around the sun, which brings it closer to the sun than Mercury and twice as far from the sun as Mars.
“This is the closest approach expected in 2021 to a medium-sized asteroid, where‘ medium-sized ’means at least several hundred meters in size,” said Paul Chodas, Director of the Center for Studies Things Near Earth, to CBS News.
However, it poses no impact risk, and scientists know its way right, having studied it for about two decades.
“As the 2001 FO32 makes its way into an internal solar system, the asteroid picks up speed like a skateboarder rolls down a half-pipe, then slows down after being turned backwards. into deep space and turning back towards the sun, “NASA said.
Description of place
The upcoming event provides a unique opportunity for astronomers to gain a better understanding of the asteroid, including magnitude, reflection and composition. Some of the studies will make use of NASA’s Infrared Telescope (IRTF) Facility on Mauna Kea in Hawaii.
“We’re trying to do geology with a telescope,” said Vishnu Reddy, an associate professor at Lunar and Planetary labs at the University of Arizona in Tucson. “We’re going to use the IRTF to get the infrared spectrum to see its chemical matter. Once we know that, we can compare it with meteorites on Earth to find out what minerals contained in 2001 FO32. “
Additionally, researchers can use radar observations with NASA’s Deep Space Network, which has ground stations in California, Spain and Australia, to study orbit, dimensions, rotation rate, surface features and possible satellites of the asteroid.
“Observations going back 20 years have shown that about 15% of asteroids near Earth have a small moon that is similar in size to 2001 FO32,” said Lance Benner, chief scientist at JPL. “Right now there isn’t much information about this, so the close encounter provides a unique opportunity to learn a lot about this asteroid.”
UH / IfA
At its brightest, the space rock will remain “far too weak” for the naked eye, Chodas said. But space enthusiasts can see it with a telescope.
“An interesting aspect of asteroids is that observers using rear-view telescopes can see them as seemingly slow-moving stars,” EarthSky said. “It usually takes at least 5 to 10 minutes for the rear-facing telescope users to detect a space rock movement in front of its star range. But a 2001 FO32 asteroid sweeps past the Earth at such a fast speed that , as it gets closer, observers using 8- inch – or – larger telescopes may be able to detect its motion – its motion in front of the stars – in real time. “
Viewers at lower northern latitudes and in the southern hemisphere will have the best chance of seeing it at the clearest level, Chodas said. Star records help find it.
Telescopes in New Mexico that are part of the Lincoln Near-Earth Asteroid Research program discovered the asteroid in March 2001. The MIT Lincoln Laboratory program, funded by the U.S. Air Force and NASA, has been monitoring from then.
After its orbit on March 21, FO32 will continue its “lonely voyage” – not to return to Earth again until 2052. In that year, it will come within 1.75 million miles of Earth, or about seven lunar distances.
The currently most known known asteroid (410777) is the 2009 FD, which has a chance of hitting Earth less than 0.2% in 2185, according to NASA’s PDCO.