Asteroid 2014 UR116; asteroid day

Asteroid 2014 UR116 Will Cross Earth’s Orbit

This Asteroid Will Cross Earth’s Orbit

Although thousands of asteroids have been discovered and their orbits determined there are thought to be many undetected ones. This asteroid will cross Earth’s orbit of the Sun every three years and is called Asteroid 2014 UR116. It was recently discovered by a Russian professor at Moscow State University, Vladimir Lipunov. It is the size of a mountain (400m across) – much larger than the 164 feet (50m) across mentioned in my post about Asteroid Day.

Having read about Asteroid 2014 UR116 in The Telegraph I can’t determine how much of a threat it is. On the one hand NASA says this Near Earth Object (NEO) doesn’t pass near enough to earth to be a threat, but on the other NASA says it will be an impact threat for the next 150 years.

Reference

  1. Mountain-sized asteroid is heading towards Earth, says scientist – The Telegraph.

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