Our beloved Moon might look as if it’s just a bit above our heads, but a huge distance separates our planet from it. Back in 1969, during the first Apollo mission, astronauts had to travel 384,400 kilometers away from Earth in order to lay foot on the Moon.
Another fact is that asteroids constantly pass by our planet, and some of them are huge. Some make it to the surface intact, although the vast majority of these space rocks get obliterated in the atmosphere due to air friction and gravitational acceleration.
2023 HV5 is another asteroid that deserves attention, although it poses no threat to Earth. It seems like someone up there still loves us!
2023 HV5 is only the same size as a bus
According to ABC News, the 2023 HV5 asteroid is about the same size as a bus, and it shall pass by our planet at about the same distance as the Moon is placed from Earth. To be more precise, the asteroid will come as close to Earth as 434,522 kilometers.
2023 HV5 sure doesn’t like to waste any time, as it moves at a tremendous speed through space: roughly 8.9 kilometers per second. In other words, we should consider ourselves lucky that this asteroid is not on a collision course with Earth. Even though the space rock is relatively small, you still wouldn’t want it landing anywhere near your household.
Gladly, NASA is constantly on the lookout for any potential dangers coming from deep space in the form of asteroids and comets. But even so, no space agency can possibly have the right gear in order to spot any potential threat coming from space. The observable Universe is just too big – bigger than any of us would ever be capable of imagining.
Has anyone seen any dangerous asteroids approaching our planet? Those from the movies don’t count!
