An asteroid bigger than the Eiffel Tower is about to pass near Earth

Asteroid 2006 HV5 is expected to pass Earth at a speed of about 62,600 km/h on April 26, about 22 times faster than bullets..

2006 HV5 has a diameter of about 400m, while the height of the Eiffel Tower is about 300m. This asteroid will come 6.3 times further from Earth than the Moon, or 2.4 million km, according to data from Near-Earth Object Research Center (CNEOS) belonging to the ASA. This distance seems huge, but it is actually close in space. Earth’s closest neighbor, Venus, is 61 million kilometers away.

Simulation of an asteroid passing close to Earth.

Simulation of an asteroid passing close to Earth. (Photo: iЅtock)

little planet are rocks left over from the formation of the solar system billions of years ago. Most asteroids are located in the asteroid belt. Asteroids come in many different shapes and sizes, the smallest being only about 9m and the largest up to hundreds of kilometers. Cac with a diameter of 945km and Vesta with a diameter of 530km.

Asteroids leave their belts, passing close to Earth and other planets for various reasons. “We believe they formed in the asteroid belt and were ejected by impact (in this case the asteroid is debris from a larger asteroid that collided), or the orbit of the asteroid. They are destabilized by the orbital resonance of Jupiter in the belt”explains Branck Marchis, senior planetary astronomer at the SETI Institute.

2006 HV5 is one of over 31,000 Near-Earth Object (NEO) that scientists have identified so far. Near-Earth objects are defined as astronomical objects that pass within 48 million kilometers of Earth’s orbit. Ϲthey will be grouped together “Potentially dangerous” if it reaches about 7.4 million km from Earth’s orbit and has a diameter of more than 140 m.

To date, NASA has identified approximately 2,300 potentially dangerous objects. However, 2006 HV5 is very unlikely to collide with Earth and will just pass.

Article source: VnExpress