Empire State Building-Sized 'Potentially Hazardous Asteroid' Will Make Its Closest Approach To Earth This Week

Asteroid 2013 BO76 is expected to whizz past Earth on March 24, Thursday. In due course, the asteroid will maintain an astonishing speed of 50,000 kph. The asteroid has a width of around 450-500 meters and has been classified as a potentially hazardous asteroid or PHA by NASA.

Asteroid 2013 BO76, which is the same size as the Empire State Building, will approach closest to Earth on March 24. The asteroid would maintain a distance of roughly 3.1 million miles from our planet, which is 13 times the distance between Earth and the Moon. Asteroid 2013 BO76 has been identified as one of NASA's upcoming "Close Approaches," although it poses no threat to our planet.

Numerous near-Earth objects (NEOs) are watched on a daily basis in order to provide an early warning if they change course and collide with our planet. It's worth noting that the asteroid's trajectory may be readily changed. On March 24, asteroid 2013 BO76 will join a group of seven space objects that are predicted to pass Earth in close proximity.

Fortunately, none of the asteroids being watched by the space agency are deemed to represent a collision danger. Since the asteroid that killed out the dinosaurs, our planet has not been hit by an asteroid of such magnitude. 

Reference(s): NASA Asteroid Watch