T + T – normal size
NASA has revealed that a planet the size of a skyscraper is heading towards Earth.
The agency’s Center for Near-Earth Object Studies stated that the huge planet is four times the size of the Empire State Building (a skyscraper in New York City in the United States consisting of more than 100 floors and a height of 381 meters. It remained the highest in the world for more than 40 years), indicating He indicated that it will approach Earth on the 27th of May, according to what was published by the specialized scientific website “Live Science”..
And NASA explained, according to the “Middle East” website, that the planet named 7335 (1989 JA)it will pass by our planet about 2.5 million miles (4 million km), or roughly 10 times the average distance between Earth and the Moon..
The asteroid was classified as “potentially dangerous”, given the massive size of the space rock (which is 1.1 miles in diameter, or 1.8 km in diameter) and its relative proximity to Earth, which means that it can cause serious damage to our planet if its orbit is constantly changing and the rocks affect the Earth..
According to the agency, 7335 (1989 JA) It is the largest asteroid that will approach Earth this year; Scientists estimate that the asteroid is traveling at about 47,200 mph (76,000 km/h), or 20 times faster than a bullet.
The planet will not pass close to Earth until June 23, 2055; When it passes farther, about 70 times the distance between the Earth and the Moon.
In this context, this asteroid is one of more than 29,000 near-Earth objects that NASA tracks every year..
This planet also fits into the class of asteroids called «Apollo-class» that revolves around the sun while periodically crossing the Earth’s orbit, according to “Live Science” previously, indicating that astronomers know about 15,000 of these asteroids..
NASA monitors near-Earth objects closely. It recently launched a mission to test whether potentially dangerous asteroids could one day veer off course and collide with Earth..
In November 2021, NASA launched a spacecraft called the Double Asteroid Redirect Test (DART) which will collide head-on with the 525-foot-wide (160-meter) asteroid Demorphos in the fall of 2022. The collision won’t destroy the asteroid, depending on the location, but it could slightly alter its orbital path..