Here's something to dwell on as you head to work on Monday morning: A small asteroid the size of a tour bus will make an extremely close pass by the Earth at about that time, but it poses no threat to the planet.
Trajectory of asteroid 2011 MD during its June 27, 2011 flyby from the general direction of the sun.
CREDIT: NASA
CREDIT: NASA
The asteroid will make its closest approach at 9:26 a.m. EDT (1326 GMT) on June 27 and will pass just over 7,500 miles (12,000 kilometers) above the Earth's surface, NASA officials say. At that particular moment, the asteroid — which scientists have named 2011 MD — will be sailing high off the coast of Antarctica, almost 2,000 miles (3,218 km) south-southwest of South Africa.
Asteroid 2011 MD was discovered Wednesday (June 22) by LINEAR, a pair of robotic telescopes in New Mexico that scan the skies for near-Earth asteroids. The best estimates suggest that this asteroid is between 29 to 98 feet (9 to 30 meters) wide.
READ MORE HERE : http://www.space.com/12067-asteroid-2011-md-close-earth-flyby-june-27.html
READ MORE HERE : http://www.space.com/12067-asteroid-2011-md-close-earth-flyby-june-27.html
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