An incoming asteroid will pass between Earth and the moon, followed by a space rock the size of a football field.
As NASA’s OSIRIS-REx probe bids farewell to the asteroid Bennu, the space agency has issued warnings about two other space rocks that will pass too close to Earth for comfort.
On April 10, the asteroid 2021 GT3, measuring 19 metres across (roughly the length of a bowling lane), will pass between the Earth and the moon at a distance of only 255,886 kilometres, or 30 times the length of China’s Great Wall.
To put this in context, the average distance between our planet and its natural satellite is only 385,000 kilometres, so this flyby is a little too close for comfort.
Fortunately, the asteroid is unlikely to pose a direct threat to Earth, but it does serve as yet another reminder of how vulnerable the planet is to cosmic debris.
However, less than a month later, an arguably more intimidating rocky foe is set to buzz the planet, as asteroid 2021 AF8, estimated to measure anywhere between 260 and 580 metres, is set to pay a visit to the Earth’s backyard.
The “potentially hazardous” AF8, as NASA describes it, is expected to pass up to 3.4 million kilometres from Earth, ensuring that humanity will live to fight another day, at least for the time being.
To be sure, world-famous French physician and astrologer Nostradamus predicted that the Earth would be hit by an asteroid in 2021, according to some interpretations of his admittedly open-to-interpretation doomsday diatribes.
Only time will tell, but NASA and other international space agencies are keeping a close eye on the skies for potential threats. The question is whether humanity is capable of dealing with them.
