Between July 8 and July 16, five asteroids are set to fly past Earth, all at safe distances, according to NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL). These asteroids, ranging in size from 50 to 240 feet in diameter, are under constant monitoring by JPL to ensure their trajectories remain safe.
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The first asteroid, designated 2024 MT1, will pass Earth at a distance of 936,000 miles on July 8. Following this, on July 10, asteroid 2024 ME1 will come within 2,700,000 miles of our planet. Asteroid 2022 YS5 will approach at 2,620,000 miles on July 11. The next encounter will be on July 13, when asteroid 2024 NG will pass at 2,140,000 miles. The final asteroid, 2024 BY15, will come within 3,850,000 miles on July 16.
These events follow recent observations made by NASA’s Deep Space Network’s Goldstone planetary radar of two other asteroids, 2024 MK and 2011 UL21, which safely passed Earth. On June 27, asteroid 2011 UL21, which is approximately 1.5 kilometers wide, passed Earth at a distance of 4.1 million miles (6.6 million kilometers). Despite its classification as potentially hazardous, calculations confirm it poses no threat to Earth. JPL scientists discovered that 2011 UL21 is a binary system, with a smaller asteroid or moonlet orbiting it.
Just two days later, on June 29, asteroid 2024 MK passed at a much closer distance of 184,000 miles (295,000 kilometers), slightly more than three-quarters the distance to the Moon. This asteroid, about 150 meters wide, was observed using a bistatic radar method, revealing detailed surface features such as concavities, ridges, and boulders. The observations also showed that Earth's gravity had altered its orbit, shortening its orbital period around the Sun by about 24 days.
These observations and ongoing monitoring efforts by NASA and JPL ensure that any potential threats from near-Earth objects are identified and tracked well in advance, maintaining our planet's safety.
