FLORIDA – A 1.2-mile-wide asteroid will pass close to Earth next week, but is not expected to collide with our planet.
Social media users who have seen the photo of the object have said that it appears to be wearing a face mask like the ones used now to prevent coronavirus infections, according to new images from the Arecibo Observatory in Puerto Rico.
The asteroid is called 52768 (1998 OR2), and it was first discovered in 1998.
NASA confirmed that the asteroid is, in fact, the largest of its kind to fly this year, as it is almost half the size of Earth’s tallest mountain, Mount Everest.
The Arecibo Observatory is using its powerful radar system to track (52768) 1998 OR2, a near-Earth asteroid that will pass at a distance 16 times greater than the distance to the Moon on April 29 via RainMaker1973 pic.twitter.com/QQl96QXn1k
– Geophysicist ⚠️ ⛈ (@ChaacTlaloc)
April 23, 2020
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In Puerto Rico, astronomers at the Arecibo Observatory report that the asteroid is approaching Earth at speeds of approximately 8.7 km per second or 19,461.3 miles per hour.
Asteroid OR2 1998, officially known as asteroid (52768) was first discovered by astronomers in 1998, who have been constantly observing the space rock to estimate its orbital trajectory.
NASA has included the 1998 asteroid OR2 in the “potentially dangerous” asteroid category due to its massive size.
It is estimated to be around 4.1 kilometers long and 1.8 kilometers wide and is unusually bright.
NASA classifies all asteroids above 100 meters in size and within a distance of about 7,480,000 kilometers from Earth in the category of “Potentially Hazardous Asteroids” (PHAs).
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