NASA Predicts A Box Truck-Sized Asteroid to Have A Very Close Encounter With Earth; Details Inside

• Image Credit: Google

• Jan 26, 2023 | Dhupali Das

Amateur astronaut Gennadiy Borisov discovered asteroid 2023 BU from his MARGO observatory in Nauchnye, Crimea on... 

 Digital Desk: A box truck-sized asteroid is expected to pass very close to Earth, on Friday (January 27, 2023). The asteroid 2023 BU will pass by Earth at a distance of 3,600 kilometres above the planet's surface, making it one of the closest passes by a near-Earth object ever recorded, according to NASA. 

When will the asteroid 2023 BU make a close encounter with Earth?

At around 7:27 p.m. EST on Thursday, January 26 (5:57 a.m. IST on Friday, January 27), asteroid 2023 BU will pass over the southern point of South America, well within the orbit of geosynchronous satellites.

Will the asteroid hit Earth?

However, the asteroid will not hit Earth. The asteroid would become a fireball and generally dissolve harmlessly in the atmosphere, even if it had the potential to hit Earth. It's possible that some of the larger material will spread as tiny meteorites. NASA has assessed the asteroid's size to be between 3.5 and 8.5 meters.

Who discovered the asteroid?

Amateur astronaut Gennadiy Borisov discovered asteroid 2023 BU from his MARGO observatory in Nauchnye, Crimea on January 21.  Borisov also discovered the interstellar comet 2I/Borisov. He sent several observations to the Minor Planet Center (MPC), a clearinghouse for tiny celestial body position measurements that is well-known on a global scale. The data was then automatically sent to the Near-Earth Object Confirmation Page. After collecting enough data, the MPC announced the discovery, and within three days, a number of observatories throughout the world made dozens of observations. This helped astronomers better define the orbit of 2023 BU.

NASA's Scout impact hazard assessment system analyzed data from the MPC's confirmation page and quickly predicted the asteroid's near encounter. The Scout impact hazard assessment system is managed by NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory's Center for Near Earth Object Studies (CNEOS).

In a statement released by NASA, Davide Farnocchia, a navigation engineer at JPL, said that while NASA's Scout swiftly ruled out 2023 BU as an impactor, it was nevertheless able to anticipate that the asteroid will make an extremely close approach to Earth despite the few observations. He also stated that this is one of the closest contacts by a known near-Earth object ever observed.

The asteroid's journey can be tracked using NASA's "Eyes on Asteroids."

What will happen to the asteroid’s orbit after its encounter with Earth?

Any asteroid that comes close to Earth will undergo a change in the course due to the planet's gravity. Asteroid 2023 BU is anticipated to vary dramatically in its orbital route around the Sun due to its close approach to Earth. The asteroid took 359 days to complete its orbit around the Sun, which was roughly round before it came into contact with Earth.

Following the asteroid's contract on January 27, its orbit will become more elongated, with the orbit moving out to almost halfway between Earth's and Mars' orbits at its farthest point from the Sun. The asteroid will then complete one orbit every 425 days.