Huge Asteroid 2022 PW headed for Earth! NASA reveals how dangerously close space rock will come | Tech News

Huge Asteroid 2022 PW headed for Earth! NASA reveals how dangerously close space rock will come

Asteroid 2022 PW is heading for Earth and NASA reveals when it will come closest to our planet.

By: SHAURYA TOMER
| Updated on: Aug 15 2022, 17:52 IST
This asteroid is worth $10,000 Quadrillion
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1/6 hereas other asteroids are generally made up of ice or rocks, this unique asteroid is made up of nickel, which is one of the building blocks of the solar system. One of the biggest asteroids in our Solar System, the 16 Psyche asteroid is made up of gold, nickel and iron deposits and is supposedly worth more than Earth's economy. The asteroid is worth nearly $10,000 Quadrillion. (NASA)
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2/6 The Psyche Mission will also help scientists to study and understand iron cores, a previously unexplored building block of planet formation. The 16 Psyche asteroid mission is a part of NASA's Discovery missions. (Pixabay)
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3/6 The findings of this mission could enable scientists to develop a way of using asteroids as resources. Asteroids could come in handy when building structures in space, such as bases on other planets or even the Moon. Due to their 85 percent metal structure, they could be an excellent source of minerals. It is even said that the raw materials extracted from asteroids could even exceed the metal reserves present on Earth. (NASA)
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4/6 The mission has been in the phase known as assembly, test, and launch operations since March 2021. Since the launch window is limited, scientists and engineers have worked round the clock in order to finish the spacecraft's assembly in time. However, due to unexpected software issues, the mission has now been delayed and pushed to 2023. (NASA)
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5/6 NASA said, "Due to the late delivery of the spacecraft's flight software and testing equipment, NASA does not have sufficient time to complete the testing needed ahead of its remaining launch period this year, which ends on October 11. The mission team needs more time to ensure that the software will function properly in flight." (NASA)
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6/6 In order to reach the asteroid, the spacecraft will fly by Mars for a gravity assist in May 2023 and, in early 2026, orbit around asteroid Psyche in the main asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter. NASA says that the Psyche mission is expected to launch in both 2023 and 2024, but due to the uncertainties, the exact dates of these potential launch periods are yet to be determined. (NASA)
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Asteroid PW is hurtling towards earth at blistering speed! (Pixabay)

An asteroid as big as an aeroplane is headed straight for Earth. Lately, there have been many that have made their closest passes to earth. Scientists have classified many of them as potentially dangerous asteroids due to their close approaches to earth.

The asteroid, named Asteroid 2022 PW is already on its way to Earth travelling at a speed of nearly 25000kms per hour. Nearly 94-foot wide, Asteroid 2022 PW is almost the size of an aeroplane. It will pass Earth at a distance of merely 530,000kms. That is the one of the closest asteroid approaches we've seen so far this year!

Thankfully, this asteroid does not pose any risk to the planet. Davide Farnocchia of NASA's Near-Earth Object Studies Center says, “A 2068 impact is not in the realm of possibility anymore, and our calculations don't show any impact risk for at least the next 100 years.”

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NASA's Planetary Defense Coordination Office monitors the sky with telescopes and keeps a track of upcoming flybys by Near-Earth objects (NEOs). With the help of advanced telescopes, more than 750,000 asteroids have been discovered to date out of which over 27,000 are near-Earth asteroids.

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First Published Date: 15 Aug, 17:52 IST
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