Asteroid 2011 UL21. The “destroyed planet” will approach Earth this week. NASA confirms that there is no danger to the world.
Foreign space agencies reported that during the night of June 27, according to Universal Time. Or during the early morning hours, local time in Thailand, the asteroid “2011 UL21” is the size of an entire mountain. It will approach 6.6 million kilometers from Earth, making it one of the largest asteroids to approach our planet in 125 years.
Asteroid 2011 UL21 is a near-Earth asteroid (NEA) orbiting within a radius of 1.3 astronomical units (AU) from the Sun. It revolves around the sun every 3 years.
2011 UL21 is about 1.7-3.9 kilometers across, large enough to cause massive damage if it falls to Earth. They have the potential to cause damage on a continental scale and release enough debris into the atmosphere to cause significant climate change. Therefore, it is classified as dangerous at the “killer planet” level.
This planetary destroyer will safely pass our planet at a speed of about 93,000 km/h.
NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory estimates that 2011 UL21 will pass at a distance of about 6.6 million kilometers from Earth. He considered it the closest in 110 years, but stressed that it is still too far away to cause harm to the world. It is about 17 times farther from the moon.
Gianluca Masi, astrophysicist and director of the Virtual Telescope Project (VTP), said that although the asteroid does not pose a threat to Earth now or in the future, it is interesting because it may be one of the 10 largest asteroids that pass our planet at a distance of less than 7.5 million. km (7.5 million km) since 1900.
Those interested can watch 2011 UL21's flyby of Earth through a free live stream from VTP, which will share views from the Bellatrix Observatory in Chicano, Italy, he said.
The broadcast will begin at 4:00 PM ET on June 27 (3:00 AM on June 28 Thai time), and the asteroid is expected to begin appearing within the first 15 minutes after the broadcast begins.
Watch the stream of asteroid 2011 UL21 hurtling near Earth. here
According to NASA simulations, 2011 UL21 will not come close again until 2089, when it is expected to come within 2.7 million kilometers of our planet, two and a half times closer than its last landing.
Compiled from Life Sciences