NASA has issued a warning about an asteroid the size of “a stadium” that will approach Earth on Tuesday, September 17.
The asteroid “2024 ON” is 290 meters in diameter and will come within 1 million kilometers of Earth, according to the Jet Propulsion Laboratory of the American space agency. The space rock last passed by Earth in 2013 and will make another approach in 2035, according to NASA’s data.
Earth is about to gain a temporary mini-moon—asteroid 2024 PT5. Discovered on August 7, 2024, this asteroid is roughly 10 meters (33 feet) in diameter and will be captured by Earth's gravity from September 29 to November 25, 2024.
— Erika (@ExploreCosmos_) September 13, 2024
During this time, the asteroid will loop around… pic.twitter.com/xDZERy3CsS
The object was first detected by NASA’s Near-Earth Object (NEO) Program, which uses observatories around the world to track unexplored space elements, reports the Independent.
The asteroid is being monitored by the Virtual Telescope Project, which recorded it on September 9 traveling at about 40,000 kilometers per hour. While experts considered it potentially hazardous, its closest approach distance is 2.6 times greater than the average lunar distance, meaning that 2024 ON poses no threat to Earth on its current trajectory. However, even a slight deviation could have significant consequences.
The enormous size of the asteroid makes it 99% larger than any other near-Earth object, but it will not pass close enough to be visible without a telescope.
For those interested in skywatching on that day, there will be a rare partial lunar eclipse, coinciding with a supermoon.
This spectacle will be visible across Europe and Africa, and it will also be observable in parts of North and South America, as well as Asia.
