A Truck-Size Asteroid Will Come 'Extraordinarily Close' to Earth Tomorrow - Gizmodo

An asteroid is connected its mode to Earth, but don’t worry—the extremity is not here. The asteroid, dubbed 2023 BU, is astir the size of a container motortruck and is not projected to interaction our satellite during its flyby connected Thursday. However, it volition beryllium “one of the closest approaches by a known near-Earth entity ever recorded,” according to a NASA scientist.

NASA’s Jet Propulsion Lab said successful a release connected Wednesday that 2023 BU is astir 11.5 to 28 feet (3.5 to 8.5 meters) wide, which is tiny capable to mostly pain up successful our ambiance if it were to deed us. But NASA doesn’t expect 2023 BU to slam into the planet; alternatively the asteroid volition walk astir 2,200 miles (3,600 kilometers) supra the confederate extremity of South America connected Thursday, January 26, astatine 4:32 p.m. PST. NASA was capable to cipher the presumption and trajectory of the asteroid utilizing Near Earth Asteroid Scout, a hazard appraisal system.

“Scout rapidly ruled retired 2023 BU arsenic an impactor, but contempt the precise fewer observations, it was nevertheless capable to foretell that the asteroid would marque an extraordinarily adjacent attack with Earth,” said Davide Farnocchia, a navigation technologist astatine NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory who developed Scout. “In fact, this is 1 of the closest approaches by a known near-Earth entity ever recorded.”

2023 BU is passing person to america past immoderate of the satellites orbiting our planet, and Earth’s gravity is changing the asteroid’s way astir the Sun from circular to much elongated. The asteroid was discovered by Gennadiy Borisov astatine the MARGO observatory successful Nauchnyi, Crimea connected January 21. Since then, observatories crossed the satellite person besides detected 2023 BU, starring to robust models of the asteroid’s way and imaginable hazard.

Astronomers’ detection of and punctual survey of 2023 BU shows however robust humanity’s asteroid detection workflow is becoming. Our quality to yet support our satellite is advancing, too, aft the successful DART trial ngo to deflect asteroid past October.