The National Astronomical Research Institute (NARIT) has released images of asteroid 2011 UL21 as it passes 6 million kilometers from Earth from the NARIT robotic telescope at Springbrook Observatory, Australia on June 27, 2024 at 3:22 p.m. Thailand time.
Asteroid 2011 UL21, also known as 415029, is a member of the Apollo asteroid family whose orbit crosses Earth's. The asteroid is between 1.7 and 3.9 kilometers in diameter, or about the size of Mount Everest. Therefore, it is classified as a PHA (Potentially Hazardous Asteroid) or an asteroid that could pose a risk to Earth.
However, even though 2011 UL21 is classified as a PHA asteroid, during its closest approach to Earth, it will be about 6 million kilometers away from our planet, or about 15 times the distance from Earth to the Moon. Therefore, there is very little chance that the asteroid will cause damage to our planet.
An animated image showing the location of the small star. While moving against the stars in the background which is created by combining dozens of still images together. Because the asteroid is moving across the sky at such high speeds, it appears as a short white line in each image from an 8-second exposure.
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S.R.: Thank you for the information and images from NARIT, the National Institute for Astronomical Research.