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<ul><li><keyword id="8885942" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="asteroid-52768">Asteroid 52768</keyword> (1998 OR) will make its close approach to Earth on April 29. </li><li>It will be sixteen times farther from Earth than the Moon, as it makes its approach. </li><li>Asteroid 52786 is over four kilometres wide, and by far, the biggest asteroid to fly past Earth this year. </li></ul>The biggest asteroid of the year — half the size of Mount Everest — is set to zip past the planet in April. Over four kilometres wide, <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/an-asteroid-nearly-half-the-size-of-mount-everest-might-be-on-a-collision-course-for-earth-in-less-than-a-year/articleshow/70698774.cms">Asteroid 527 (1998 OR2)</a> has been classified as a ‘<keyword id="8153774" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="Potentially-hazardous-object">potentially hazardous object</keyword>’ by the Center for Near-Earth Object Studies (CNEOS). Bigger than most average asteroids, normally a few feet in size, the asteroid does not pose a threat. According to planetary scientist James O’Donoghue, the asteroid will be over sixteen times farther from Earth than the Moon as it makes its approach. <div type="twitter" handle="physicsJ" handlename="Dr James O'Donoghue" image="http://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images/1184474406522769410/cb0y9bpN_normal.jpg" favoritecount="995" retweetcount="433" status="Hey Earth, about that asteroid in the news, 52768(1998 OR2), it will pass by Earth at a distance over SIXTEEN times… https://t.co/AT0HnD5PFa" createdat="1583328309000" id="1235194572872933377"></div>

 In fact, the asteroid will be so far away from Earth that it won’t be visible to the naked eye. You’ll need binoculars and a clear sky to hope to catch a glimpse of the asteroid as it streaks through space. What are the chances of an <keyword id="4678476" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Asteroid-hitting-Earth">asteroid hitting Earth</keyword>? Asteroid 52768 is over four kilometres wide — any asteroid that spans more than a kilometre in diameter <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/what-happens-when-an-asteroid-actually-hits-earth/articleshow/70732006.cms">can’t be compared to any human-made weapon</a>. If it were to hit Earth, it might not destroy all life on Earth but the resulting impact would be 10 times worse than the damage from Hiroshima. If it were to hit land, the asteroid would throw up enough dust and debris to block out the Sun. And, crashing into the water would result in numerous tidal waves hundreds of feet high — capable of submerging entire coastlines. Smaller asteroids — called comets or meteoroids — breach Earth’s defences fairly often. However, large objects that pose a threat to life are rare. A <a href="https://www.nickbostrom.com/existential/risks.html">historical study</a> of asteroid strikes shows that a kilometre-wide asteroid hits the planet every 500,000 years on average. But asteroids bigger than five kilometres, only come around every twenty million years or so. “There is a real but very small risk that we will be wiped out by the impact of an asteroid or comet,” says the study published in the Journal of Evolution and Technology. There have been at least five confirmed mass extinctions and at least one is directly attributed to an asteroid hitting Earth. The K/T extinction, which wiped out the dinosaurs 65 million years ago, is believed to be the result of an asteroid at least 10 kilometres wide hitting the Yucatan peninsula. In order to track the threat posed by an asteroid, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and the European Space Agency (ESA) are continually monitoring space for all approaching bodies. They’re also working on potential solutions to either destroy or reroute an asteroid if one is every heading directly for the planet. “It’s a statistical certainty that one day the Earth will get hit by a large asteroid, whether that’s in 50 years or 100 million years,” said NASA’s Extreme Environment Mission Operations (<a href="https://sservi.nasa.gov/articles/video-blowing-up-asteroids-with-neil-degrasse-tyson/" data-type="tilCustomLink">NEEMO</a>) principal investigator Mike Gernhardt. See also: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/science/space/news/the-10-biggest-asteroids-that-pose-a-threat-to-earth-in-2020/articleshow/73054066.cms">The 10 biggest asteroids that pose a threat to Earth in 2020</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/science/space/news/the-worlds-oldest-asteroid-struck-earth-2-2-billion-years-ago-triggering-the-first-episode-global-warming-in-history/articleshow/73509096.cms">The world's oldest asteroid struck Earth 2.2 billion years ago triggering one of the first global warming episodes in history</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/science/space/news/an-asteroid-that-whizzed-past-earth-last-week-had-its-own-moon/articleshow/74097441.cms">An asteroid that whizzed past Earth last week had its own Moon</a>

An asteroid half the size of Mount Everest is set to fly past Earth in April — but it's not going to end the planet

<ul><li>The <keyword id="9126209" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="biggest-asteroid-of-2020">biggest asteroid of 2020</keyword> — Asteroid 52768 (1998 OR2) — didn’t get the memo that Earth is under lockdown.</li><li>It will be zooming past the planet on April 29.</li><li>It will be 6.3 million kilometres from Earth, which is the closest that it’s come to the planet since it was discovered in 1998.</li></ul>The <keyword id="9126211" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="biggest-asteroid-of-the-year">biggest asteroid of the year</keyword> — Asteroid 52768 (1998 OR2) — is expected to fly past the planet April 29. Earth may be in lockdown but the asteroid is ensuring that its taking the necessary precautions as it slowly edges closer. According to astronomers at the <keyword id="2838422" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="arecibo-observatory">Arecibo Observatory</keyword> in Puerto Rico, the asteroid 'looks like' its wearing a mask due the mountains and ridges on its surface. And, it will remain 6.3 million kilometres away— 16 times further away than the Moon — at its closest approach to Earth. The asteroid has been classified as ‘potentially hazardous’ by the Centre of Near-Earth Object Studies (<a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/science/space/news/the-10-biggest-asteroids-that-pose-a-threat-to-earth-in-2020/articleshow/73054066.cms">CNEOS</a>). This is because it’s bigger than 140 meters in size and will be under 8 million kilometres from Earth, which is enough to cause ‘global effects’ if it were to crash into the planet. <div type="twitter" handle="esaoperations" handlename="ESA Operations" image="http://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images/882544568805273600/AUXk6tLR_normal.jpg" favoritecount="1301" retweetcount="455" status="Wow. Asteroid 1998 OR2 tumbling through space seen by the Arecibo observatory.They confirm the space rock is ~ 2… https://t.co/FftLbcbqbe" createdat="1587731201000" id="1253661639896956928"></div> However, an analysis by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration’s (NASA) Asteroid Watch shows it has no plans of actually breaching the Earth’s atmosphere. <div type="twitter" handle="AsteroidWatch" handlename="NASA Asteroid Watch" image="http://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images/509040235900964864/EmVTcmUe_normal.jpeg" favoritecount="3977" retweetcount="1226" status="Have you been hearing about asteroid 1998 OR2’s close approach on April 29? Rest assured that this asteroid will sa… https://t.co/VspuLPMqJU" createdat="1586888870000" id="1250128648360931332"></div> “The small-scale topographic features such as hills and ridges on one end of <keyword id="9126210" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="asteroid-1998-OR2">asteroid 1998 OR2</keyword> are fascinating scientifically. But since we are all thinking about COVID-19 these features make it look like 1998 OR2 remembered to wear a mask,” said <a href="https://www.ucf.edu/news/asteroid-visiting-earths-neighborhood-brings-its-own-face-mask/">Anne Virkki</a>, head of Planetary Radar at the observatory. <div type="twitter" handle="AreciboRadar" handlename="Arecibo Radar" image="http://pbs.twimg.com/profile_images/764109379868033024/pZFALCH9_normal.jpg" favoritecount="593" retweetcount="248" status="#TeamRadar and the @NAICobservatory staff are taking the proper safety measures as we continue observations. This w… https://t.co/GtlWyHbg2H" createdat="1587248883000" id="1251638650682650630"></div> The asteroid’s visit on April 29 will be the closest that it has been to the planet since its discovery on 24 July 1988 by NEAT at Haleakala. The only time that it will be any close will be on 16 April 2079, according to NASA’s <a href="https://ssd.jpl.nasa.gov/sbdb.cgi?sstr=52768;old=0;orb=0;cov=0;log=0;cad=1#cad">estimates</a>. “In 2079, asteroid 1998 OR2 will pass Earth about 3.5 times closer than it will this year, so it is important to know its orbit precisely,” said Flaviane Venditti, another research scientists at the Arecibo Observatory. “Although this asteroid is not projected to impact Earth, it is important to understand the characteristics of these types of objects to improve impact-risk mitigation technologies,” Virkki added. Until the Apophis or 'God of Chaos' asteroid comes around on 2029 or Asteroid 2011 UL 21 passes by in 2024, the upcoming trip of 1998 OR 2 will be the most significant of the decade. See also: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/science/space/news/the-10-biggest-asteroids-that-pose-a-threat-to-earth-in-2020/articleshow/73054066.cms">The 10 biggest asteroids that pose a threat to Earth in 2020</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/science/space/news/there-are-19-interstellar-asteroids-between-jupiter-and-neptune-and-even-computers-cant-predict-where-they-are-headed/articleshow/75350530.cms">There are 19 interstellar asteroids between Jupiter and Neptune ⁠— and even computers can’t predict where they are headed</a>

The biggest asteroid of 2020 will zoom past Earth on April 29 — adhering to 'social distancing' and even wearing a mask

<ul><li>2020 will see a massive four-kilometre wide <keyword id="6549794" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="asteroid">Asteroid</keyword> 52768 (1998 OR2) make its approach towards Earth in April.</li><li>Another kilometre sized space rock, Asteroid 136795 (1997 BQ), will be flying past the planet in May.</li><li>Here’s a full list of the biggest asteroids that will be whizzing past Earth in 2020.</li></ul>There are swarms of millions of asteroids in the Solar System. Most of them keep to themselves as they orbit the Sun between Mars and Jupiter. But, a subset of these asteroids, have orbits that come in a little too close and cross the orbit of Earth around the Sun. Not many pose a threat — but some astronomers think it’s <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/neil-degrasse-tyson-and-other-scientists-believe-asteroids-will-eventually-hit-earth/articleshow/70644547.cms">only a matter of time</a> before one of those little rocky worlds will crash into the planet. "No human in the past 1000 years is known to have been killed by a meteorite or by the effects of one impacting," according to the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (<a href="https://www2.jpl.nasa.gov/sl9/back2.html">NASA</a>). While the Center of Near-Earth Object Studies (CNEOS) and the Near-Earth Object Coordination Center (NEOCC) claim that their detection methods are full-proof, that may not always be true. <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/what-happens-when-an-asteroid-actually-hits-earth/articleshow/70732006.cms">Asteroid 2019 OK </a>wasn’t even on any of the detection radars when it passed a mere 73,000 kilometres from Earth on 26 July 2019. History shows us that there have been a few close calls. In 2013, the <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/the-last-major-asteroid-to-hit-earth-destroyed-500-square-kilometers-and-it-could-have-been-much-worse/articleshow/70782507.cms">Chelyabinsk meteor</a> streaked through the Russian skies and exploded only 30 kilometres from the surface. Though it wasn’t a direct impact, the force of 444,000 tons of TNT damaged buildings for 500 kilometres. Here are the ten biggest asteroids set to approach the Earth in 2020:

The 10 biggest asteroids that pose a threat to Earth in 2020

<ul><li><keyword id="6549794" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="asteroid">Asteroid</keyword> 310442 (2000 CH59) is set to fly past the planet today. </li><li>The stadium-sized asteroid is the biggest to visit the planet in December. </li><li>It will be travelling at 44,417 kilometres an hour mere 7 million kilometres from Earth. </li></ul>Earlier this month, we saw asteroids <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/science/space/news/asteroids-the-size-of-planes-will-fly-past-earth-today-within-hours-of-each-other/articleshow/72432901.cms">zoom past the Earth in packs of four</a> and now the <keyword id="8490441" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="20" keywordseo="biggest-asteroid">biggest asteroid</keyword> of December is set to fly by. Asteroid 310442 (2000 CH59) is the <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/a-potentially-hazardous-asteroid-will-whiz-past-earth-at-49000-km/hr-on-friday/articleshow/70988766.cms">size of a stadium</a> measuring between 280 meters to 620 meters in diameters. That means, at its widest, the asteroid is as big as the second-tallest structure in the world — the <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/23-photos-of-famous-landmarks-lit-up-in-solidarity-with-Paris/Tokyo-Skytree-Tokyo-Japan/slideshow/49809809.cms">Tokyo Skytree</a>. At its smallest, it’s still at least as big as the <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/amazing-images-of-the-eiffel-tower-show-its-construction-over-two-years/articleshow/57438344.cms">Eiffel Tower</a>. <div type="image" title="tokyoskytree" msid="72978243" hostid="261" caption="&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Tokyo Skytree, the second tallest structure in the world, in Japan&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;"></div>

 Aside from the size, asteroid has impressive speed as well. Observations show that it will be going at 44,417 kilometres per hour as it approaches the planet. Given its size and trajectory, it has been identified by the Center for Near-Earth Object Studies (<a href="https://cneos.jpl.nasa.gov/ca/">CNEOS</a>) as ‘potentially hazardous’. How do they know it’s coming? The asteroid was first spotted on 6 February 2000 as per the Jet Propulsion Laboratory’s (<a href="https://ssd.jpl.nasa.gov/sbdb.cgi?sstr=310442">JPL</a>) records. Observations show that the asteroid goes around the Sun passing between the orbits of Mercury and Venus when its closest to the star. Is the asteroid going to hit the planet? Despite its size and velocity, Asteroid 310442 is not going to crash into the planet. It will be a good 7.3 million kilometres from the Earth’s surface as it makes its approach. While that may seem like a good distance away, in astronomical terms, it’s actually quite close — a mere fraction of the 240.09 million kilometres between the Earth and Mars. According to <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/neil-degrasse-tyson-and-other-scientists-believe-asteroids-will-eventually-hit-earth/articleshow/70644547.cms">astronomers</a>, it’s only a matter of time before an asteroid sets a direct course for the planet. They believe it might not be ‘<a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/the-last-major-asteroid-to-hit-earth-destroyed-500-square-kilometers-and-it-could-have-been-much-worse/articleshow/70782507.cms">dinosaur destroying</a>’ but it will definitely be a <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/elon-musk-says-we-have-no-defence-against-asteroid-god-of-chaos/articleshow/70748251.cms">‘doomsday’ hit</a>. "There are always rocks flying through space. Inevitably one of these will hit us and it will have pretty dramatic effects," Cardiff University scientists Ian McDonald told <a href="https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/science-environment-46181450">BBC Today</a>. When’s the next asteroid? The <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/the-10-biggest-asteroids-that-could-crash-into-earth-this-year/articleshow/70686096.cms">next asteroid</a>, as big as the one flying past the Earth today, will be visiting on 10 January 2020. But, Asteroid (2019 UO) will be a lot closer, albeit slower. An even bigger asteroid is on the way in April. Asteroid 52768 (1998 OR2) is over 4 kilometres in diameter — half the size of Mount Everest. It will be zooming past the planet at over 30,000 kilometres per hour. See also: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/india/news/solar-eclipse-2019-ring-of-fire-pictures-must-see/articleshow/72976086.cms">10 stunning pictures you must see if you missed the 'Ring of Fire' solar eclipse</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/science/research/news/not-an-asteroid-but-massive-volcanic-eruptions-in-india-might-have-set-off-mass-extinction-66-million-years-ago/articleshow/72831792.cms">Not an asteroid but massive volcanic eruptions in India might have set off mass extinction 66 million years ago</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/science/space/news/ufologist-claims-the-god-of-chaos-asteroid-will-strike-somewhere-over-europe/articleshow/71537022.cms">Ufologist claims the ‘God of Chaos’ asteroid will strike somewhere over Europe</a>

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An asteroid half the size of Mount Everest is set to fly past Earth in April — but it's not going to end the planet

Prabhjote Gill

The biggest asteroid of 2020 will zoom past Earth on April 29 — adhering to 'social distancing' and even wearing a mask

Prabhjote Gill

The 10 biggest asteroids that pose a threat to Earth in 2020

Prabhjote Gill

Eiffel Tower sized asteroid set to zoom past Earth today

Prabhjote Gill

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