Tuesday, November 8, 2011

Carrier-sized Asteroid (2005 YU55) to Fly Past Earth

A carrier-sized asteroid will fly past the earth on November 8, 6:28 PM EST (6:28 AM of November 9 in Manila). It is the Asteroid 2005 YU55 which, on its closest approach, will be closer to the earth than the moon.

The asteroid will be at its closest by 324,600 kilometers as measured from the center of the earth. The last time an asteroid this large was this close to our planet was in 1976, while the next approach will be in 2028.

Although the asteroid's orbit regularly brings it to the vicinity of Earth, Venus and Mars, this 2011 encounter with our planet is the closest it has come in 200 years.

And if you are worried about it's effect on our planet, NASA reports that the asteroid's gravitational influence will have no influence on Earth, including tides and tectonic plates.

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