Big asteroid to fly by Earth on September 1
The Guardian.
MASSIVE ASTEROID.. A large near-Earth asteroid will pass
safely by our planet on September 1, at a distance of seven million kilometres,
or about 18 Earth-Moon distances, according to NASA
NASA says asteroid 2.7 miles wide will make ‘relatively
close encounter with our planet’
Similar exoplanet could exist in habitable zone of nearby star system just 16 light-years away
Similar exoplanet could exist in habitable zone of nearby star system just 16 light-years away
Asteroid Florence was first spotted in 1981, and is
estimated to be 2.7 miles (4.4 kilometers) wide.
It will fly past Earth at a distance of about 4.4 million
miles (7 million kilometers), or about 18 Earth-moon distances.
This is the closest an asteroid this large has come since
NASA began its Near Earth Object (NEO)-tracking programme.
The flyby in September will be the closest it has come to
Earth since 1890. And, it would not come this close again until 2,500.
While it may sound alarming, NASA says asteroid Florence
will safely fly past Earth at a distance of about 4.4 million miles (7 million
kilometers).
It is not the closest encounter our planet has seen with an
NEO, but for this distance, the experts say it is the largest.
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