According to information published on the website of the Center for Research on Near-Earth Objects NASA The potentially dangerous asteroid 349507 (2008 QY) will approach Earth again after 34 years. It is expected to pass by our planet at a distance of approximately six million kilometers.
According to data, asteroid 349507 (QY 2008) will make its closest approach to Earth on October 3 at 20:39 UTC (23:39 Moscow time). The minimum distance between this space object and the Earth would be approximately 0.042 astronomical units, or approximately 6.3 million kilometers. Astronomical objects passing from Earth orbit at a distance of less than 7.5 million kilometers are considered to pose a potential danger.
Scientists estimate that the diameter of the asteroid is between 520 and 1.2 thousand meters. Its speed is 20.96 kilometers per second.
Asteroid 349507 (2008 QY) was first discovered by astronomers on September 30, 1989. After that, it remained out of sight of the scientific community for 33 and a half years until it was detected again on February 13, 2023.
This asteroid falls into the category of Earth-crossers, that is, asteroids that pass through the Earth’s orbit. However, this does not mean that a collision with the planet is inevitable or imminent.
It is also worth noting that on August 23, asteroid 6037 (1988 EG) with a diameter of up to 960 meters flew about six million kilometers from the Earth. Faina Rubleva, scientific director of the Moscow Planetarium, noted that this is an interesting event, but the probability of an asteroid hitting the Earth is very low.
former astronomer appreciated The danger of Earth approaching an asteroid that has been missing for 34 years.