An asteroid, about 110 feet wide, similar in size to an airplane, is expected to fly past Earth on Aug. 31. The asteroid, traveling at a speed of 42,768 kilometers per hour, falls under the category of “Potentially Hazardous Objects”. It is closely related to our planet. This asteroid named 2022 QZ6 is going to pass near the Earth at a speed of 12,60,000 km.
The US space agency NASA describes NEOs (Near-Earth Objects) as NEOs (Near-Earth Objects) as comets and asteroids that have been carried into orbits by the gravitational attraction of nearby planets that cause them to reach Earth. allow access to the neighborhood. These space rocks are identified as NEOs when their proximity to Earth is less than 8 million kilometers.
When it comes to PHAs (Potentially Hazardous Asteroids), classification is done based on a unit called Minimum Orbit Intersection Distance (MOID). A MOID value of 0.05 a.u. or less is considered a PHA. To put things in perspective, 0.05au, translated into kilometers, is roughly equal to 74,80,000. Any asteroid passing below this limit is considered a PHA.
NASA is closely monitoring the fly-bys, which happen frequently. A collision with an asteroid, if large enough, could have disastrous consequences. To deal with such a situation, NASA launched the DART (Double Asteroid Redirection Test) program last year. The program is developed with the aim of protecting the planets against near-Earth objects.
In the program, the space organization plans to send a spacecraft toward an asteroid pair consisting of Dimorphus and Didymos. The spacecraft will be sent to hit the double asteroid, after which NASA will assess the asteroid’s deflection from the hit. It will also map the future path that will help eliminate the possibility of an asteroid hit.
Asteroid 2022 QZ6 is not the only NEO to pass by Earth in the coming days. 161989 Cacus 1978 CA An asteroid, much larger than QZ6, will pass by Earth on September 1. With a width of 1.9 kilometers for its massive size, the asteroid is larger than 99 percent of all known asteroids.
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