An asteroid will approach Earth tomorrow, Sunday, July 25, about the size of the Giza pyramid, according to Live Science, based on observations and calculations made by NASA’s Center for Near-Earth Object Studies.
The asteroid, named 2008 GO20, will approach at a distance of at least 4.5 million kilometers at a speed of about 29,000 kilometers per hour.
It is a large asteroid: according to calculations made by NASA itself, its diameter can be from 97 to 220 meters. Like all asteroids of a certain size that approach Earth at a distance of at least 7.5 million km, this piece of space rock is classified in the “potentially hazardous” category.
As we always do, we make it clear that inclusion in this special category is just a classification method that NASA uses to distinguish the different asteroids approaching Earth based on two main characteristics: their size and proximity. Inclusion in this category does not imply that it is a “dangerous” asteroid, at least with respect to this passage.
For the record, the minimum distance this asteroid will reach from Earth is greater than 19.5 times the average distance between the Earth itself and the Moon.
For the following sections of the asteroid, the question is a little different: first, it is becoming more and more difficult to calculate its exact trajectory, passing by pass, which is precisely why this asteroid is included in the category of potentially dangerous asteroids: NASA wants to monitor it in order to understand how it might Its course changes in the future, also on the basis of the gravity of the Earth during approach, as well as on the basis of the gravity of other planets.
The asteroid GO20 of 2008 actually approached Earth on August 4, 1901 (minimum distance of 1.3 million km). It also approached it on July 31, 1935 (1.85 million km). The next pass is scheduled for July 24, 2034, when it approaches within 3.1 kilometers of Earth.
