NASA Tacker: 5 Asteroids Approaching, Flying By Earth This Weekend

KEY POINTS

NASA detected five asteroids approaching Earth
All five asteroids will fly past Earth this weekend
The biggest asteroid in the group measures 285 feet wide

NASA’s Center for Near-Earth Object Studies (CNEOS) has detected five asteroids that are expected to fly past Earth. The approaching asteroids will zip past the planet on Saturday (May 2) and Sunday.

The first asteroid that will safely approach Earth on Saturday is called 2020 HN9. This asteroid measures about 174 feet wide and is currently flying towards the planet at a speed of over 27,000 miles per hour.

Closely following 2020 HN9 is an asteroid known as 2020 HZ4. According to CNEOS, this asteroid has an estimated diameter of about 285 feet. It is currently moving across space at an average velocity of over 42,000 miles per hour.

The third asteroid that will safely approach Earth on Saturday is known as 2020 HN5. This 194-foot asteroid will fly past the planet at a speed of almost 16,000 miles per hour.

All three asteroids will visit Earth’s neighborhood on Saturday. 2020 HN9 will fly past Earth on May 2 at 8:17 a.m. EDT from a distance of about 0.03846 astronomical units, or around 3.6 million miles away.

2020 HZ4, on the other hand, will approach the planet on May 2 at 1:55 p.m. EDT. During this time, it will be about 0.04114 astronomical units or roughly 3.8 million miles from the planet’s center.

As for 2020 HN5, this asteroid will zip past Earth on May 2 at 9:21 p.m. EDT from a distance of about 0.02470 astronomical units, or around 2.3 million miles away.

On Sunday, Earth will be visited by the asteroids known as 2020 HL1 and 2020 GE3. According to CNEOS, 2020 HL1 measures about 174 feet wide. It is traveling across the Solar System at a speed of almost 27,000 miles per hour.

2020 HL1 will approach Earth on May 3 at 6:59 a.m. EDT from a distance of about 0. 0.03234 astronomical units, or around 3 million miles away.

As for 2020 GE3, this 118-foot asteroid is currently approaching Earth at a speed of almost 12,000 miles per hour. It is expected to fly past the planet on May 3 at 11:32 p.m. EDT. During this time, it will be about 0.04895 astronomical units or 4.5 million miles from Earth.