This incoming asteroid, which is hurtling towards Earth at terrifying speeds, may pose a threat to Earth. A massive “potentially hazardous” asteroid flew by yesterday after making its closest approach to Earth. Asteroid 2022 UD71 was 62 feet in size. But the terror of these terrifying space rocks is far from over! The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has issued a warning that asteroid 2022 WP5, a massive plane-sized space rock, will make its closest approach to Earth today. NASA has designated it a “potentially hazardous object.”
The reason for this is its close proximity! The upcoming asteroid is 140 feet in size and is expected to come as close to Earth as 3.79 million miles, according to NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL). NASA’s Center for Near Earth Object Studies (CNEOS) confirmed that the asteroid will arrive at 51875 km/h. NASA constantly monitors these monstrous space rocks that pose a threat to Earth.
According to NASA, any asteroid that comes within 4.6 million miles of Earth and is larger than 150 metres in size is classified as a potentially hazardous object. This is why Asteroid 2022 WP5 has been designated as a potentially hazardous object. NASA will monitor this incoming asteroid to see if it poses a threat to Earth.
Asteroids with designations such as 2022 WP5 are common. However, this is a provisional designated name for an asteroid that includes the year of discovery, followed by two letters that indicate the order in which it was discovered that year. If an asteroid is discovered between January 1 and 15, it will be designated as AA, AB, AC, and so on. While the final discoveries of the year between December 16 and December 31 will receive YA, YB, YC, and so on. However, for some reason, it lacks the letter J.
NASA uses some of the best technologies to learn about these asteroids, such as optical and radio telescopes to determine the size, shape, rotation, and physical composition of asteroids. NASA uses radio telescopes at Deep Space Network and the National Science Foundation’s Arecibo Observatory in Puerto Rico to collect detailed characterization data on asteroids.
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