Most asteroids and comets have orbits that do not bring them very close to Earth, and they are only classed as dangerous if they come within 4.6 million miles and are larger than 460 feet.
The next significant approach to Earth by a potentially hazardous asteroid will be by 99942 Apophis on April 14, 2029.
Nasa’s Osiris-Apex spacecraft is currently headed to the asteroid to study the physical changes that will result from its close encounter with Earth.
Apophis was also predicted to get dangerously close to Earth in 2068, but experts have since revised their calculators and no longer see it as a risk.
Nasa takes threat seriously
In total, five objects will pass close to the Earth between now and Friday, with the other four varying between 63ft and 120ft in diameter.
The asteroid coming closest is 2024BJ3 which is approximately the size of an aeroplane, and will come within 533,000 miles on Friday. All are too faint to be seen with the naked eye.
Nasa is taking the threat from space rocks seriously and in 2022 carried out the first asteroid deflection test proving it could alter the orbit of the small moonlet Dimorphos.
It also sent a mission to the asteroid Bennu, which could hit Earth in 2182 with the force of 22 atom bombs.
Although the odds of a catastrophic strike are 1 in 2,700, Nasa was concerned enough to launch a spacecraft to Bennu seven years ago to collect samples, in case an Armageddon-style deflection mission is required.
The samples from the mission are now being studied by experts across the globe, including the Natural History Museum in London.
Dr. Thomas Hughes is a UK-based scientist and science communicator who makes complex topics accessible to readers. His articles explore breakthroughs in various scientific disciplines, from space exploration to cutting-edge research.
