NASA Asteroid News: 3 Tiny NEOs Headed Towards Earth On Tuesday

NASA has identified three asteroids that will zip past Earth tomorrow. Based on the data collected by the agency’s Center for Near-Earth Object Studies (CNEOS), these asteroids will most likely cause huge explosions in the atmosphere if they end up colliding with the planet.

The first asteroid that will enter Earth’s vicinity on Tuesday has been identified as 2019 UH5. According to CNEOS, this asteroid is currently moving towards Earth at a speed of almost 8,000 miles per hour. The agency estimated that the space rock is about 69 feet.

Trailing behind 2019 UH5 is an asteroid known as 2019 VU. As indicated in CNEOS’ database, this asteroid is traveling at an average speed of about 34,000 miles per hour. It has an estimated diameter of 66 feet.

The last asteroid that will visit Earth’s neighborhood on Tuesday is called 2019 UE13. This space rock is currently flying across space towards Earth at a velocity of almost 20,000 miles per hour. CNEOS estimated that this asteroid is about 144 feet wide.

According to CNEOS, both 2019 UH5 and 2019 VU have been classified as Apollo asteroids, which means they have very wide orbits around the Earth and the Sun. From time to time, their orbits intersect with that of Earth as it travels around the massive star.

2019 UE13, on the other hand, is an Aten asteroid. Like other asteroids that belong to this category, 2019 UE13 orbits the Sun in an oval-shaped path. Occasionally, the asteroid’s orbit intersects with that of Earth. This usually happens when the asteroid approaches its farthest distance from the Sun.

If these Earth-crossing asteroids end up hitting the planet, they will most likely not cause an impact event. Instead of hitting the ground, they’ll probably explode in the atmosphere, releasing a high level of energy that can cause slight damage to nearby buildings.

According to CNEOS, 2019 UH5 will fly past Earth on Nov. 5 at 3:43 p.m. EST from a distance of 0.03415 astronomical units or around 3.2 million miles away. As for 2019 VU, this asteroid is expected to approach Earth on Nov. 5 at 3:45 p.m. EST. During this time, the asteroid will be about 0.00693 astronomical units or roughly 644,000 miles from the planet’s center.

The last asteroid that will fly past Earth tomorrow, 2019 UE13, will make its debut at 8:09 p.m. EST. During its approach, the asteroid is expected to be about 0.02113 astronomical units or about 1.9 million miles away.