Watch 'Monster Planet Killer' Asteroid Making Its Close Approach to Earth; Here's When And How To View It

Asteroid 2013 BO76 is being monitored as it will relatively pass close to Earth at only 3.1 miles (5.1 kilometers) away, which is nearly 13 times the distance between Earth and the Moon. As Science Times previously reported, this large asteroid is approximately three times larger than the London Eye and is expected to glide past the planet on Thursday, March 24.

Despite its massive size and is considered potentially hazardous, experts said that it should not cause an alarm to people as it will only pass nearby Earth.

(Photo : Pixabay/MasterTux)
What Time Will the "Monster Planet Killer" Asteroid Pass By Earth? Here's How To Watch It

What Time Will the Asteroid 2013 BO76 Pass By Earth?

At almost 1,500 feet across, asteroid 2013 BO76 is larger than the Empire State Building. According to NASA's NEO Earth Close Approaches database, the asteroid will hurtle past Earth on March 24, 2022, at 6:55 EST (10:55 PM in the UK), at a staggering speed of 30,000 miles per hour (50,000 kilometers per hour).

Fortunately, it will not hit the planet as it will be at least 13 times the standard lunar distance, which is considered a near-miss in space terms. It has now been added to the American space agency's upcoming "Close Approaches" list.

NASA first discovered the asteroid on January 17, 2013, from the astronomical observatory PanSTARRS survey and was first photographed by the Virtual Telescope Project on March 7 when the asteroid was about 15 million miles away from Earth, according to the Daily Star.

Its approach on Thursday will be its closest distance to the planet but poses no harm to Earth. Newsweek reported that orbital predictions estimate the asteroid will pass by Earth again in 2193.

ALSO READ: NASA Working On Stopping "City-Killer" Asteroids From Hitting Earth; How Prepared Is Humanity From Space Rocks?

When Will the Next Asteroid Pass By Earth?

NASA is tracking thousands of these so-called near-Earth objects to provide an early warning if they shift into a collision course with Earth. If they come close to 4.56 million miles, it will be considered "potentially hazardous: by space organizations all over the world.

The most notable of all asteroid impacts were the 6-mile-wide crater in Yucatan Peninsula that happened about 65 million years ago and is believed to have wiped out most of Earth's plant and animal species, including dinosaurs. But more recently, a 164-foot asteroid crashed in Siberia in 1908 that destroyed millions of trees across 830 square miles.

This 2022, the first asteroid that passed by Earth was the asteroid 7482 on January 18. As NASA reported, the asteroid was discovered in 1994 and was hurtling at a speed of 47,344 miles per hour accompanied by other asteroids.

Meanwhile, The Sun reported that the next near-Earth object passing by will be on March 2023 when Asteroid 2005 ED224 will come closest to Earth, traveling at a speed of 61,000 miles per hour. This 164-foot asteroid is said to have a 1 in 500 chance of hitting Earth.