Two near-Earth objects will fly past the Earth on 14 September within a 24-hour period, days after another pair of asteroids flew past on 28 August, along their orbit around the Sun, a Mashable report said.
The asteroids, named 200 QW7 and 2010 CO1, were classified as near-Earth objects by NASA’s Centre for Near-Earth Object Studies (CNEOS).
Asteroids are considered near-Earth objects if they pass within 1.3 astronomical units (AU) of our planet. One AU is equal to the distance of Earth from the sun.
The 2000 QW7, according to the report, will be the first among the two to fly past. It was first detected on 26 August 2000 and is reported to be 650 metres wide and 290 metres tall. According to Mashable, the closest approach will be 0.035428 astronomical units and is expected to return in Earth’s vicinity around October. The 2000 QW7 will fly past Earth at a speed of 23,100 km per hour, an Indian Express report said.
The 2010 CO1, discovered in 2010, will be the second one to fly past the Earth, reportedly on 14 September. It is said to be 260 meters wide and 120 meters long and is going at a speed of approximately 51,696 mph. NASA has classified the asteroid as an Apollo Asteroid.
(With inputs from Mashable and The Indian Express.)
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