An asteroid with diameters between 22 and 49 metres will shoot pass Earth in a distance closer than Earth from the Moon on Tuesday, according to the US National Aeronautics and Space Administration (Nasa).
"Will #asteroid 2011 ES4 hit Earth? No! 2011 ES4's close approach is 'close' on an astronomical scale but poses no danger of actually hitting Earth. #PlanetaryDefense experts expect it to safely pass by at least 45,000 miles (792,000 football fields) away on Tuesday September 1," Nasa Asteroid Watch posted Saturday on its Twitter account.
Will #asteroid 2011 ES4 hit Earth? ? No! 2011 ES4’s close approach is “close” on an astronomical scale but poses no danger of actually hitting Earth. #PlanetaryDefense experts expect it to safely pass by at least 45,000 miles (792,000 football fields) away on Tuesday Sept. 1.
— NASA Asteroid Watch (@AsteroidWatch) August 28, 2020
Nasa estimates the asteroid's relative speed at around 8.16km per second.
The last time asteroid 2011 ES4 had flown by Earth was visible from ground for four days. This time, it will be closer to earth than before with an estimated distance of 120,000km, closer than that of the Moon, which is 384,000 km away from the Earth.
The asteroid listed as potentially hazardous asteroid was first discovered in the spring of 2011 and passes by Earth every nine years.
A "potentially hazardous asteroid" is currently defined based on parameters that measure the asteroid's potential to make threatening close approaches to the Earth, according to Nasa.
