10 Asteroids to fly by close to Earth today, here's all you need to know

For many decades, asteroids have been a subject of curiosity as well as trepidation for people. One of the major tasks that NASA undertook after its formation in 1952, was watching over and tracking the movements of as many asteroids as it possibly could. In keeping with that goal, the space agency has put several telescoped in place, that helps it to spot, record and follow the movement of several thousand asteroids at one time. NASA regularly updates and publishes this data on its official website, under the Asteroids Watch section. Recently on its Jet Propulsion laboratory website, NASA revealed as that as many as 10 asteroids are going to make a close approach to Earth on October 20. Here are all the details about these asteroids as provided by NASA on cneos.jpl.nasa

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Multiple Asteroids to fly by close to Earth

Asteroid 2020 UQ

This asteroid will brush past Earth’s orbit, at a distance of only 0.013 astronomical units. In miles, this will be 1,218,650 (1 million) miles. To put this into perspective, it is helpful to know that the distance between earth and moon is only 238855.086 miles. The asteroid is travelling at a velocity of 15.6 km per second and will be farther away from Earth than our moon. It will make its closest approach before floating away from Earth at 01:17 UTC, which is 6:17 pm Monday, Pacific Time (PT).

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Asteroid 2020 UC

This asteroid will be only 0.009 astronomical unit away from Earth during its closest approach. Hence this means in miles it will be 885,000 miles away. It is the size of an average school bus. The asteroid is travelling at a speed of 7.86 km per second.

Asteroid 2017 UH5

This asteroid was discovered in 2017, hence its name. At the point of its closest approach, it will be only 0.02 au away from Earth which is 2,120,000 miles. It is the size of an average two-storey house. It will make its closest approach to Earth at 03:16 UTC which is 8:16 pm Monday, Pacific Time (PT).

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Asteroid 2020 UR

 At its closest approach point, this asteroid will only be 0.009 au from Earth. In miles, this is only 836602.27 miles. It is also the size of an average school bus. It will come closest to Earth at 04:04 UTC, this is 9:04 pm Monday, Pacific Time (PT).

Asteroid 2020 UB

Asteroid 2020 UB will be only 0.004 au away from Earth at  05:16 UTC. In miles, it will be only 450,000 miles. It is the size of an average school bus and is arriving at the speed of  10.62 km per second.

Asteroid 2020 UB1

Asteroid 2020 UB1, will be 0.02 au away from earth at its closest approach point. In miles, this is 1859116 miles. Although it might seem like a large distance, in astronomical terms it is freakishly close. This asteroid is also relatively bigger than the other ones and is between 33m to 73m.

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Asteroid 2020 TC3

At its closest approach point, this asteroid will only be 0.033 au from Earth. In miles, this is only 3067541.6 miles (3 million) miles. It will be closest to Earth 10:33 UTC, which is 3:33 am Tuesday, Pacific Time (PT).

Asteroid 2020 TW6

This asteroid is one of the bigger ones in the lot. It will come close to earth at 18:35 UTC, which is 11:35 am Tuesday, Pacific Time (PT). At its closest point, it will be only 0.027 au or 2509806 miles (2.5 million miles) away from earth.

Asteroid 2020 UP

Measuring between 20 m to 45 m, this asteroid will be only 0.041 au away from earth. It will make its closest approach to our planet at 20:12 UTC, that is 1:12 pm Tuesday, Pacific Time (PT). It is travelling at a speed of 17.28 km per second.

Asteroid 2020 SG3

At its closest approach, this asteroid will only be 0.049 au away from Earth. In miles, this is 4554834.6 miles. It is travelling at a speed of 5.33 km per second. It will come close to Earth at 2:53 pm Tuesday, Pacific Time (PT).

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