Asteroid Twice The Size Of Pyramid Giza To Zoom Past Earth’s Orbit On September 6

The phenomenon of an asteroid moving past our planet Earth is not new. Many times, space rocks of various sizes cross Earth's orbit. But, this time, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is tracking an asteroid which is twice the size of Great Pyramid of Giza. The space rock named 465824 (2010 FR) is going to zoom past Earth today (September 6th).

The scientists from Centre for Near-Earth Object Studies (CNEOS) have reported to NASA that on September 6, at about 15:30 IST, the asteroid will be close to Earth's orbit. Asteroid 2010 FR is reportedly up to 270 metres wide and 886 metres in height. The Asteroid 2010 FR will continue to stay close to the earth for another six days starting from Sunday (September 6th).

Asteroid 465824 (2010 FR) is also known as an Apollo asteroid because it will cross the orbit of our planet. This asteroid will move towards Earth at a speed of 31,400 mph. This asteroid was discovered by the Catalina Sky Survey (CSS) on March 18, 2010.

According to NASA, the asteroid would be about 4.6 million miles away from Earth at the point of its nearest approach. The diameter of the space rock is measured at about 120-270 metres.

NASA took to its Twitter and tweeted as, "Our Planetary Defense experts are not worried about asteroid 2010 FR and you shouldn’t be either because it has zero chance of hitting Earth. It will safely pass by our planet on Sept. 6 more than 4.6 million miles away that’s more than 19 times the distance of our Moon!"

NASA said that, “Occasionally, asteroids’ orbital paths are influenced by the gravitational tug of planets, which cause their paths to alter. Scientists believe stray asteroids or fragments from earlier collisions have slammed into Earth in the past, playing a major role in the evolution of our planet.”

Asteroids are the rocky remains left over around 4.6 billion years ago from the early development of our solar system. They are often referred to as minor planets. A couple of days ago, NASA shared a video about asteroids.

When an asteroid or comet comes close to Earth we call it a near-Earth object. But how close is close? How do we keep track of them? What can we do to mitigate our risk?

☄️ Here’s what you need to know about near-Earth objects this #AsteroidDay: pic.twitter.com/mCjW3FSoz5

— NASA (@NASA) June 30, 2020