Chinanews, August 19, according to the US "World Journal" report, NASA said on the 18th local time that an asteroid the size of a small car passed by the earth on the 16th, only about 2,950 kilometers away. , Is the asteroid that is closest to the Earth observed so far.
The trajectory of the asteroid 2020 QG as it approaches the Earth. Image source: NASA official website.
According to reports, the asteroid named 2020 QG is about 3 to 6 meters long. It flew over the southern Indian Ocean at a speed of 12.3 kilometers per second on the morning of the 16th, and the distance from the earth is only about 2,950 kilometers.
However, NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory stated in a statement that even if 2020 QG advances on a route directly to the earth, it will not cause any damage to the earth. Instead, it will decompose in the atmosphere and form a fireball in the sky, which is commonly known as "meteor".
NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory stated that the 2020 QG has rotated about 45 degrees due to the influence of the Earth's gravity.
Asteroid 2020 QG photographed. Image source: NASA official website.
According to the report, the asteroid was only recorded by the telescope of the Baloma Observatory of California Institute of Technology 6 hours after it flew over the earth.
NASA said that asteroids of similar size fly over the Earth several times a year, but unless they are coming directly towards the Earth and exploding in the atmosphere, it is difficult to record them.
In 2013, an asteroid about 20 meters in diameter exploded over Chelyabinsk, Russia, indirectly causing damage to more than 3,000 buildings and injuring more than 1,600 people.