The space rock, dubbed 2023 DZ2 by NASA, is expected to fly between Earth and the moon at speeds exceeding 17,400 miles per hour, according to the agency, which assigned it a rarity score of three as the occurrence only happens roughly once per decade.
The asteroid will pass by Friday and Saturday on a track that scientists suggest is slightly less than half the average distance to the moon from Earth — which is still 174,650 kilometers, or about 108,000 miles — and measures between 140 feet and 310 feet in diameter.
For reference, an Olympic-sized swimming pool is about 164 feet long.
Astronomers at the observatory of La Palma in Spain’s Canary Islands discovered 2023 DZ2 in late February of this year and have studied the rock to note its orbit, size and anticipated trajectory ever since.
It will travel closest to Earth in the afternoon on March 25, at around 3:50 p.m. Eastern time, according to the website EarthSky.
People in the northern hemisphere will likely have the best opportunity to see the asteroid, which experts believe will be observable through small telescopes, in the evening on Friday, March 24.
NASA introduced the upcoming cosmic visitor in messages shared to Twitter this week, which confirmed that the asteroid is not expected to collide to with Earth.
Despite that, the agency said that its close approach will allow astronomers to learn more about asteroids, helping them prepare for any “potential asteroid threat” that could be discovered in the future.
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