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An enormous asteroid is currently headed towards Earth, and what’s concerning is that it’s predicted to come perilously close! According to NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory, three asteroids are due to make their closest approach to Earth today. One of them is a giant 180-foot asteroid named 2023 HZ4, which is hurtling towards Earth and will pass very close on May 4th, which happens to be today. Should you worry about this upcoming giant asteroid? Know what NASA has revealed.
Danger of asteroid 2023 HZ4
As per the NASA asteroid tracking data, Asteroid 2023 HZ4 will come very close to the Earth today, May 4. It will come as close as 1.91 million miles and it will be travelling at a speed of 81907 kmph. The asteroid 2023 HZ4 was discovered very recently, April 24, 2023, and it belongs to the Apollo group. Sky.org said that this asteroid makes one orbit around the Sun in 824 days.
Is this a potentially hazardous asteroid? Thankfully not! NASA’s JPL has given the tag of potentially hazardous objects to all those space rocks that approach within 4.6 million miles of Earth and have a size larger than about 150 meters. However, a slight deviation from the set orbit of the asteroid can lead it towards our planet which can be catastrophic. Hence, NASA and other space agencies keep a constant track of these asteroids.
Tech behind Asteroid tracking
It can be difficult to track these asteroids without the help of the latest technology. In order to detect the danger, NASA has established the NEO Observations Program, which is tasked with finding, tracking, and characterizing NEOs, and identifying those that may pose a hazard to Earth. NASA’s NEOWISE telescope is one of the well-known telescopes to hunt for asteroids that could pose a threat to Earth. Moreover, NASA’s Deep Space Network radio telescopes and the National Science Foundation’s Arecibo Observatory in Puerto Rico obtain comprehensive characterization data about these asteroids.
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