An asteroid the size of the tower in Pisa will pass near Earth Monday, July 28, according to a warning issued by NASA. The spatial object has an estimated length of about 64 meters and will move to a distance of approximately 632,000 km from our planet – slightly further than the orbit of the Moon.
The researchers are drawing an alarm signal about the asteroids difficult to detect. Photo: Shutterstock
Although the specialists say that the asteroid is not a danger to the Earth, the spatial object called 2025 OW is the largest of the five heavenly bodies near our planet in the next period. Two of them, with dimensions between 30 and 60 meters, will pass on Thursday, July 24, over 1.6 million kilometers, and another smaller will pass on Saturday, according to the Daily Mail.
Impact would cause local damage
Although not a “planets killer”, An asteroid of this dimension could cause significant local damage if they enter the atmosphere above a populated area, with the possibility of breaking windows or producing minor structural damage. However, such asteroids tend to explode in the atmosphere because of intense friction and pressure.
2025 OW moves at an estimated speed at about 75,000 km/h, a typical value for asteroids that reach the Earth.
Reduced visibility but active monitoring
The asteroid will not be visible to the naked eye or binoculars at the time of its passage. However, NASA monitors it carefully by Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) and the Center for the study of objects close to Earth (CNEOS). The observations are made with the help of terrestrial telescopes and planetary radars, such as Goldstone Solar System Radar, which determines their trajectory and size.
The danger comes from the “blind” areas of the space
Although 2025 OW is not a threat, the researchers are alarming about the asteroids that are difficult to detect that are approaching the Earth from directions in the “shadow” of the planet Venus. Recent studies have shown that Venus blocks the vision to a series of asteroids that move synchronous with its orbit and which, due to the brightness of the sun, escapes the observation of conventional telescopes.
Three such asteroids – 2020 SB, 524522 and 2020 CL1 – are approaching dangerously to the terrestrial orbit and have dimensions between 100 and 400 meters, enough to devastate whole cities.
