An aliveness of an asteroid ’s close approach to Earth has attracted a lot of thought over the last few day , largely because of just how close-fitting it appears .
The spiritedness , shared by Facebook page Cosmoknowledge on Sunday , show asteroid 99942 Apophis ’s path , culminating in its closest approach on April 13 , 2029 . To be clear , there is nothing to fear from this asteroid , which is promise by NASA not to hit Earth in 2029 , nor in another close-fitting coming in 2036 . However , the animation is still what is bed as a nailbiter .
ⓘ IFLScience is not responsible for content shared from external site .
In April 2029 , Apophis ispredicted by NASAto issue forth within 32,000 kilometre ( 20,000 miles ) of the Earth ’s surface . close than some satellites , it should be visible from the Eastern Hemisphere without the help of a scope or opera glasses .
It may sound close ( in terms of space that is , not in terms of a jaunt ) but astronomers are not concerned . In 2021 , Apophis made a flyby of Earth , at which point astronomers made knock-down radar watching in fiat to well determine its orbit . Before that , NASA believed that it had a chance of wallop afterward in the century , but the observations ruled that out .
“ A 2068 wallop is not in the realm of possible action any longer , " Davide Farnocchia of NASA ’s Center for Near - Earth Object Studiessaid of the asteroid , " and our calculations do n’t show any impact risk for at least the next 100 years . "
Other spiritedness , a small closer and from a different angle , are more reassuring . NASA’sEyes On Asteroidswebsite also provides more elaborate persuasion of this and other asteroids , for anyone who has a second of free time and fancy feel at the mercy of random space sway .
NASA is go to use the 2029 flyby to take abetter look at the asteroid , named for the Egyptian ophidian deity that wanted to devour the Sun , using the spacecraft that refund samples fromasteroid Bennu . A little science cherry on top of the main delicacy ? That we are n’t start to be hit by a big stone from space .
