A huge asteroid, larger than the Eiffel Tower, is expected to pass very close to the planet Earth today, Tuesday.
The asteroid, named 2021 KT1, has been described as “potentially dangerous” by NASA, although it is expected to pass safely. NASA usually determines if an asteroid is potentially dangerous by considering its size and distance from our planet.
According to NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory, this asteroid is about 183 meters, as much as the New York Olympic Tower and will approach about 7.2 million kilometers from Earth.
An object larger than about 150 meters that can reach the Earth within a distance of 7.5 million kilometers is called a potentially dangerous object.
The 2021 KT1 will pass close to Earth at a speed of about 64,300 kilometers per hour, however it is not expected to be a direct hit. NASA estimates that the size of the asteroid is between 492 and 1,082 feet in diameter. This corresponds to about the size of three football fields together.
However, he is not the only one who has approached Earth. An asteroid known as 2021 GW4 was found in April 19,312 kilometers away from the Earth's surface, traveling at 30,094 kilometers per hour.
Four smaller asteroids are also expected to pass close to Earth by Wednesday, but none of them are considered “potentially dangerous”.
According to NASA's Center for Earth Studies, no one needs to worry too much about an asteroid or comet hitting Earth, adding that the threat of car accidents, disease, or other natural disasters is much higher.
However, researchers are closely monitoring all asteroids coming close to planet Earth and are currently studying ways to prevent asteroid strikes in the event of a major threat to Earth.
