NASA Asteroid Tracker: 4 Space Rocks Approaching, Flying Past Earth Tuesday

KEY POINTS

NASA detected four asteroids approaching Earth
One of the asteroids will approach Earth from a close distance
The biggest asteroid in the group measures over 140 feet wide

NASA’s asteroid tracking system has detected four near-Earth objects that will fly past the planet on Tuesday (June 2). One of the incoming asteroids will approach Earth from a distance that’s almost equivalent to that between the planet and the Moon.

The incoming asteroids are currently being monitored by NASA’s Center for Near-Earth Object Studies (CNEOS). As noted by the agency, the first asteroid that will fly past Earth tomorrow has been identified as 2020 KK7.

CNEOS estimated that this asteroid measures about 108 feet wide. It is currently flying towards Earth at an average velocity of almost 34,000 miles per hour.

According to CNEOS, this asteroid will approach Earth on June 2 at 4:43 a.m. EDT. During this time, the asteroid will be about 0.00343 astronomical units or roughly 319,000 miles from the planet’s surface. This means the asteroid will fly past Earth from a distance that’s slightly farther than that between the planet and the Moon.

The second asteroid that will fly past Earth tomorrow is called 2020 KD4. This space rocks measures about 115 feet wide and is traveling across space at a speed of almost 12,000 miles per hour.

2020 KD4 is expected to fly past Earth on Tuesday at 8:47 a.m. EDT from a distance of about 0.02680 astronomical units or about 2.5 million miles away.

Trailing behind 2020 KD4 is an asteroid known as 2020 KF. With an estimated diameter of 144 feet, 2020 KF will be the biggest asteroid that will approach Earth tomorrow.

According to CNEOS, the asteroid will zip past the planet tomorrow at a speed of over 24,000 miles per hour. At 12:00 p.m. EDT on June 2, it will reach its closest distance to Earth, which is about 0.03102 astronomical units or 2.9 million miles.

The last asteroid that will visit Earth’s vicinity on Tuesday has been identified as 2020 KJ1. As indicated in CNEOS’ database, this asteroid has an estimated diameter of about 105 feet. It is moving towards Earth at an average speed of about 11,000 miles per hour.

2020 KJ1 is expected to approach Earth on June 2 at 2:57 p.m. EDT. During its approach, it will be about 0.01403 astronomical units or 1.3 million miles from the planet’s center.