Tech Desk
Aug 06, 2024
A massive asteroid, roughly the size of a blue whale, is hurtling towards Earth at a speed of 30,381 kilometres per hour. Asteroid 2024 OR1 is currently on a trajectory that brings it close to our planet, prompting NASA to issue a warning about this near-Earth object (NEO).
Asteroid 2024 OR1 is approximately 110 feet in diameter, making it a big object of interest. It is large and fast, like other fast-moving NEOs, but it is going to pass by Earth close. The asteroid belongs to the Apollo group, which is a class of objects whose orbits cross Earth's orbit, hence especially of interest to astronomers and space agencies.
The agency detected the asteroid first through the NASA Centre for Near-Earth Object Studies, based in Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Pasadena, California.
Read more: Cosmic close call — Apophis asteroid to zoom past Earth in 2029
According to the size and speed of 2024 OR1, warnings have been issued by the agency, and continuous monitoring and preparedness are being emphasized. Today would be the closest approach by the asteroid towards Earth.
The discovery and tracking of 2024 OR1 underline the high degree of importance attached to the task of continuously scanning the sky for asteroids and preparing for a possible impact.
Teams from NASA have collaborated with international space agencies including various major observatories and research centres to ensure that strategies to mitigate the consequences of a potential asteroid collision are prioritised.
