570-foot Asteroid 2010 XC15 rushing towards Earth today, says NASA! Check fiery speed

A huge asteroid is all set to buzz Earth today at an extremely close distance. NASA has revealed key details about the asteroid.

Asteroid 2010 XC15 is nearly the size of a skyscraper. (Wikimedia Commons)

Though NASA regularly issues alerts against small asteroids which frequently make close trips to Earth, it is seldom that large space rocks come tearing towards us. Despite being hundreds of feet in width, these asteroids are still not large enough to cause catastrophic destruction which ends all life. In fact, NASA estimates an asteroid would have to be at least 96 kilometers wide to be considered as a planet-killer. But it doesn't mean we should completely ignore all the alerts issued by the space agency. The small asteroids are still capable of causing massive loss of life if they impact a crowded city.

Now, NASA has warned that another asteroid is charging towards Earth at staggering speed today, and it is huge!

NASA's Planetary Defense Coordination Office, which keeps an eye on dangerous Near-Earth Objects (NEOs), has red-flagged an asteroid named Asteroid 2010 XC15 due to its extremely close approach to the planet.

Asteroid 2010 XC15 key info

The asteroid will make its closest approach to Earth today, December 27, at a distance of just 772,318 kilometers. According to NASA, the space rock is already on its way towards the planet travelling at a speed of nearly 36358 kilometers per hour, which is more than the speed of a hypersonic ballistic missile! What makes this asteroid stand out from other asteroids is its humongous size. NASA has revealed that it is a 570-foot monster, making it nearly the size of a soaring skyscraper!

According to the-sky.org, the Asteroid 2010 XC15 belongs to the Apollo group of asteroids. It was discovered more than a decade ago on December 5, 2010. This asteroid takes 229 days to complete one trip around the Sun during which its maximum distance from the Sun is 156 million kilometers and nearest distance is 64 million kilometers.

Did you know?

According to NASA, the orbits of asteroids can be changed by Jupiter's massive gravity and by occasional close encounters with planets like Mars or other objects. These accidental encounters can knock asteroids out of the main belt, and hurl them into space in all directions across the orbits of the other planets.