NASA Asteroid Tracker: Two NEOs Skim Earth To Start September

NASA has recently discovered two asteroids that are currently headed for Earth. According to the space agency’s Center for Near Earth Object Studies (CNEOS), one of the approaching asteroids is almost as big as the Leaning Tower of Pisa in Italy.

The first asteroid that’s set to fly past Earth this month has been identified by CNEOS as 2019 QA5. As indicated in the agency’s database, this asteroid is currently moving at a speed of 30,265 miles per hour and has an estimated diameter of 115 feet.

According to CNEOS, 2019 QA5 is expected to approach Earth on Sept. 1 at 9:44 pm EDT. During this time, the asteroid will be about 0.01451 astronomical units or roughly 1.3 million miles from the planet’s center.

2019 QA5 was first observed on Aug. 28. CNEOS currently does not have a record of the asteroid’s past and future near-Earth approaches.

Trailing behind 2019 QA5 is an asteroid known as 2019 QX1. CNEOS noted that this asteroid is flying at a velocity of almost 38,000 miles per hour. The agency estimated that it has a diameter of 167 feet.

CNEOS predicted that 2019 QX1 will enter Earth’s neighborhood on Sept. 2 at 3:52 pm EDT. During its approach, the asteroid will be about 0.04850 astronomical units or about 4.5 million miles away.

2019 QX1 was first observed on Aug. 24. Before approaching Earth, the asteroid was first spotted flying near Jupiter on Dec. 11, 2017. During this time, the asteroid was about 1.73114 astronomical units or around 161 million miles from the planet.

Both 2019 QA5 and 2019 QX1 have been classified by CNEOS as Apollo asteroids. Like other asteroids that belong to this family, 2019 QA5 and 2019 QX1 have very wide orbits that take them around the Sun and the Earth. From time to time, their orbits cross through Earth’s path as it goes around the Sun.

2019 QA5 and 2019 QX1 are known as near-Earth asteroids. According to NASA, these types of asteroids approach Earth because they have been nudged by the gravitational forces of other cosmic bodies such as nearby planets.