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Astronomers are tracking a recently discovered asteroid set to make a remarkably close pass by Earth on Monday evening.
The space rock, only identified days ago, is expected to fly much nearer to Earth than the Moon — though scientists say there is no danger of impact, reports NBC News.
Asteroid spotted days ago
The asteroid, named 2026 JH2, was first detected on May 10 by researchers involved in the Mount Lemmon Survey in Arizona.
According to the European Space Agency, the object measures roughly 62 feet across.
NASA data shows the asteroid will pass within about 57,000 miles of Earth during its closest approach — significantly closer than the moon’s average distance of nearly 239,000 miles.
Scientists say flybys this close are unusual for objects of this size, but not unheard of.
Visible from Earth
NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory said the asteroid is expected to reach its nearest point around 6 p.m. Eastern Time.
As it approaches, the object could become bright enough to be seen through small telescopes by amateur skywatchers.
The Virtual Telescope Project in Italy has also announced a live online broadcast of the flyby using remote telescopes.
Space agencies routinely monitor near-Earth objects to calculate whether any future threat exists.
Comparisons to Chelyabinsk
The asteroid’s size has drawn comparisons to the Chelyabinsk meteor that exploded over Russia in 2013.
That meteor, estimated at around 59 feet wide, detonated in the atmosphere and damaged thousands of buildings after shockwaves shattered windows across the region.
NASA later said the blast released roughly 30 times more energy than the Hiroshima atomic bomb.
Unlike the Chelyabinsk meteor, however, astronomers say 2026 JH2 poses no known threat to Earth.
Bigger asteroid ahead
Scientists are also preparing for the much closer future flyby of asteroid Apophis.
The massive object, measuring about 1,200 feet across, is expected to pass within roughly 20,000 miles of Earth in April 2029.
NASA’s OSIRIS-APEX spacecraft is currently scheduled to study Apophis during that approach.
However, the mission could reportedly face cancellation under proposed US budget cuts targeting dozens of NASA programs.
Sources: NBC News, NASA, European Space Agency
