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Asteroid To Pass Near Earth on Jan. 26
Asteroid To Pass Near Earth on Jan. 26
Dec 29, 2024 12:52 AM

Take a good look, because we’ll never see this space rock again in our lifetime.

Asteroid 2004 BL86 is set to make its closest approach to Earth on Monday, Jan. 26, from our planet, according to NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory. That’s more than three times the distance between Earth and the moon, so there is no threat to all us little Earthlings.

NASA also said the asteroid is about a third of a mile large, based on brightness estimates. A space rock of that size or bigger won’t pass near Earth again until 2027, when asteroid 1999 AN10 is expected to make an appearance.

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Asteroid 2004 BL86, which was first spotted by telescope on Jan. 30, 2004, at the Lincoln Near-Earth Asteroid Research survey in White Sands, New Mexico, won’t make another pass near Earth for at least the next 200 years, NASA said.

“At present, we know almost nothing about the asteroid, so there are bound to be surprises,” said Lance Benner, Jet Propulsion Laboratory scientist, in the NASA release.

Amateur astronomers , CNET.com says. Small telescopes or strong binoculars will be needed to spot the space rock as it hurtles past Earth. If cold weather or cloudy conditions prevent you from seeing the asteroid, The Virtual Telescope Project on its website.

MORE ON WEATHER.COM: Stunning Images of Earth from Space

Our Big Blue Marble, with merely a hint of an atmosphere. (Courtesy Karen Nyberg/@AstroKarenN)

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