Asteroid danger: Giant space rock hurtling towards Earth! NASA warns

Space is full of celestial objects, out of which only a few have been discovered. Asteroids are some of these objects. If you are not aware about the dangerous objects called asteroids, then know that asteroids are rocky, airless remnants left over from the early formation of our solar system about 4.6 billion years ago, according to NASA. Most of them can be found orbiting the Sun between Mars and Jupiter within the main asteroid belt. Although they are found millions of light years away, they occasionally make a close trip to Earth. Now, NASA has warned that another asteroid is on its way.

Asteroid 2022 RA5 details

NASA has issued an alert about an asteroid named Asteroid 2022 RA5 which is headed straight for Earth today, October 12. According to NASA, the 120 feet wide asteroid will make its closest approach to the planet today at a distance of 5.02 million kilometers. It is hurtling towards Earth at a staggering speed of 18252 kilometers per hour, nearly matching the speed of a hypersonic ballistic missile!

NASA’s Planetary Defense Coordination Office keeps a check on these Near-Earth Objects (NEOs) for any potential collision with Earth and declares them as Potentially Hazardous Objects if they come within around 8 million kilometers of Earth.

According to the-sky.org, the Asteroid 2022 RA5 belongs to the Apollo group of asteroids. It was discovered recently on September 14. This asteroid takes 594 days to complete one trip around the Sun during which its maximum distance from the Sun is 268 million kilometers and nearest distance is 146 million kilometers.

Was NASA’s DART Mission a success?

NASA has revealed that its first planetary defense test named the Double Asteroid Deflection Test or DART was successful in diverting an asteroid from its path. The space agency reached this conclusion after careful analysis of data obtained from the collision over the past two weeks. This test is a big win for space agencies and a major milestone in the bid to protect the planet against potentially world-ending asteroids.