Several asteroids set to fly past Earth in last weeks of December 2020: NASA

US ncy NASA anunced on December 16 that a series of asteroids will fly past Earth in last week of 2020 at an ‘unusually close’ distance. Before year 2020 winds up, se asteroids will whoosh past solar system’s only habitable planet at a small margin, ministration informed. Asteroid 2020 XS5 kwn as near-earth object is close to intersecting Earth's orbit at a speed of 01h 34m 02s. But according to orbit computations performed by  Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), Asteroid 2020 XS5 will t make an impact on Earth. Although,  Asteroid 2020 XS5 will make closest approach to Earth with only 3,173,984 kilometers apart, a distance equivalent to 8.2556 Lunar Distances. 

Meanwhile, Asteroid 2020 XF4 will come within 0.00229 Astromical Units (AU) to Earth, approximately 212,868 miles (342,577 km). Asteroid 2020 XF4 will safely barrel past earth with a distance of nearly 343,047 km. aver distance between Earth and Moon is 238,855 miles (384,400km). asteroid of a size of 24-meter is expected to maintain a distance of 5 million kilometers in its trajectory as it flies past blue planet. According to NASA, asteroid 2020 XF4 is distant eugh t to be categorized as a ‘near-Earth' asteroid. Near-Earth Objects (NEOs) are comets and asteroids that are influenced by gravitational force of nearby planets into orbits that allow m to make a flyby near Earth.

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[NASA's Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) that travels to Didymos asteroid system and observes impact. Credit: NASA]

[An artist's impression of an asteroid flyby. Credit: NASA]

Observed by Pan-STARRS 1

However, newly-discovered asteroid designated 2020 XX3 will fly by Earth at a distance of 0.15 LD or 0.00038 AU 56 847 km, approximately 35 323 miles this week. fast-approaching asteroid was observed at Pan-STARRS 1, Haleakala on December 10, and is expected to make a flypast around December 18. Asteroid 2020 XX3 has a diameter between 5.1 and 11 m (16 - 36 feet) and is classified as Apollo group of asteroids. This will be 102nd asteroid to flyby Earth within 1 lunar distance since start of year 2020. 2020 XX3 is expected to make a flypast at a distance of 57,100 km. Meanwhile, asteroid 2020 XF3 will pass Earth at a distance of approximately 6.9 million kilometers. 

[Asteroid Im Credit: NASA]

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