NASA Asteroid Tracker: 3 Giant NEOs To Zip Past Earth This Weekend

Earth is about to experience close encounters with three massive asteroids on Sunday. According to NASA’s Center for Near Earth Object Studies (CNEOS), the largest asteroid from the group is taller than the Great Pyramid of Giza.

The first asteroid that will visit Earth’s neighborhood is called 2016 OF. With a diameter of almost 460 feet, 2016 OF will be the biggest asteroid to approach Earth this weekend. It is currently travelling at a speed of 18,900 miles per hour.

2016 OF is expected to arrive on July 7 at 3:06 am ST. During its approach, the gigantic asteroid is expected to be about 0.03275 astronomical units or roughly 3 million miles from the Earth’s center.

This massive asteroid was first discovered on July 22, 2016. It is expected to return to Earth’s neighborhood in June 2022.

Trailing behind 2016 OF is a smaller asteroid known as 2016 N056. According to CNEOS’ database, this asteroid measures about 144 feet long and has a velocity of around 27, 300 miles per hour.

NASA predicted that 2016 NO56 will closely approach Earth on July 7 at 10:12 am ST. Despite being the smallest of the three, 2016 NO56 will come closest to Earth during its visit.

CNEOS noted that the asteroid will approach Earth from a dangerous distance of only 0.00877 astronomical units or 815,000 miles away, which is just about four times the distance between the Earth and the Moon.

First discovered on July 6, 2016, this asteroid is also known to approach the orbits of the Moon and Venus.

Lastly, the third asteroid that will fly by Earth on Sunday is 2019 ME3. With a diameter of about 279 feet, this asteroid is almost as tall as the Statue of Liberty. According to the data collected by CNEOS, this space rock is currently traveling at a speed of 18,400 miles per hour.

2019 ME3 will approach Earth on July 7 at 11:36 pm ST. Once it zips past Earth, it will be about 0.03244 astronomical units or 3 million miles from the planet’s center.

This asteroid was first observed on May 9 and is not expected to return to Earth’s vicinity until 2044.