Asteroid over 22 meters in diameter to pass by Earth on Tues
An asteroid with diameters between 22 and 49 meters will shoot pass Earth in a distance closer than Earth from the Moon on Tuesday, according to the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).
"Will #asteroid 2011 ES4 hit Earth? No! 2011 ES4's close approach is 'close' on an astronomical scale but poses no danger of actually hitting Earth. #PlanetaryDefense experts expect it to safely pass by at least 45,000 miles (792,000 football fields) away on Tuesday Sept. 1," NASA Asteroid Watch posted Saturday on its Twitter account.
NASA estimates the asteroid's relative speed at around 8.16 km per second.
The last time asteroid 2011 ES4 fly by Earth was visible from ground for four days. This time, it will be closer to our planet than before with an estimated distance of 1.2 lakh km, closer than that of the Moon, which is 3.84 lakh km away from the Earth.
The asteroid listed as potentially hazardous asteroid was first discovered in the spring of 2011 and passes by Earth every nine years.
A "potentially hazardous asteroid" is currently defined based on parameters that measure the asteroid's potential to make threatening close approaches to the Earth, according to NASA.
