Big Asteroid 1998 OR2 Nearly Approaching Earth's Orbit | Radar Imagery
Big Asteroid 1998 OR2 Nearly Approaching Earth's Orbit | Radar Imagery
Arecibo Observatory captured this radar image of the big asteroid 1998 OR2
1998 OR2 will fly by Earth at a distance of 3.9 million miles (6.3 million kilometers) on April 29.
1998 OR2 estimated size is between 1.1 and 2.5 miles (1.8 to 4.1 kilometers) wide — big enough that an impact could threaten human civilization.
But, to repeat, there is nothing to fear here; the asteroid will miss us by a large margin on April 29.
The following table lists the ephemerides of Asteroid 1998 OR2 computed for the past and next 7 days, with a 24 hours interval.
The flyby is expected to occur on Wednesday, April 29, at 5:56 a.m. ET
The asteroid was classified as a potentially hazardous object because it's bigger than 500 feet and comes within 5 million miles of Earth's orbit.
It's the largest asteroid expected to zip by Earth within the next two months, but it's not the largest ever.
That honor belongs to the asteroid 3122 Florence (1981 ET3), which flew by and luckily missed colliding with Earth on September 1, 2017.
It will make another pass again on September 2, 2057.
Source: NASA, Arecibo Observatory
Music: The Reckoning - AERØHEAD [Vlog No Copyright Music]
