An asteroid the size of a truck flew past Earth. It was one of the closest approaches to our planet ever recorded by scientists. Astronomers discovered the space object BU 2023 over the weekend, calculated its size and flight path. They warned that the asteroid would fly past Earth at an altitude of 3600 km over the southern tip of South America. A catastrophe was not foreseen, since this distance is even less than the orbits of many artificial satellites.
Whatever it was, NASA simulated the likelihood of a worst-case scenario. If we assume that a space object of this size would come much closer to Earth, most of it would burn up in the atmosphere, and large pieces would fall in the form of meteorites. BU 2023 has a diameter of 3.5 to 8.5 m. For comparison, the diameter of the Chelyabinsk meteorite that fell in 2013 was about 20 meters.
The American space agency noted that after the “meeting” with the Earth, the orbit of the asteroid BU 2023 will become more elongated, and the revolution around the Sun will take 425 days. Before that, it was round, and a complete revolution around the Sun took 359 days.
Scientists are constantly looking for asteroids that could pose a danger to our planet. Giant objects over 10 km in diameter, like those that killed the dinosaurs, have all been discovered. There are 4 of them, and they do not cause concern. There are quite a lot of asteroids with a diameter of less than 150 m, and it is not yet possible to detect all of them.
Source: Trash Box
I’m Meagan Diaz, a news writer and author at World Stock Market. My main focus is on technology and stock market trends, and I’m passionate about helping readers stay informed on the ever-changing landscape. I bring extensive knowledge of the industry to my work as well as a knack for storytelling that makes my articles both accessible and engaging.
