Paul Chodas: Last News

NASA is tracking what is expected to be one of the largest asteroids to visit the Earth this year – and it's set to make a "Near Earth Approach" by the end of this month.The massive space rock, dubbed 418135 (2008 AG33), is estimated to measure somewhere between 1,083 feet and 2,428 feet in diameter according to observations from CNEOS – NASA's centre for computing asteroid and comet orbits.At NASA's largest estimate the rock is over five times the size of the 443-foot London Eye, and even at the lower end of the scale it would be taller than the Eiffel Tower.At that size it would cause widespread devastation if it hit the Earth, but luckily for humanity at its closest approach it will pass by us at a distance of some two million miles.

NASA has weighed in on the huge asteroid twice the size of the Eiffel Tower that is set to whizz by Earth later this month.The hefty rock is due to pass the planet's orbit at a distance of around 1.25 million miles on March 21.Now space chiefs have moved to reassure people that the asteroid, called 2001 FO32, moved to reassure people who are worried the fly-by will be a bit too close for comfort.NASA tweeted: "On March 21, an asteroid named 2001 FO32 will safely pass by Earth, with its closest approach being a distance of about 1.23 million miles."There is no threat of a collision with our planet now of for centuries to come."Paul Chodas, director of the Center for Near-Earth Object Studies, which is managed by NASA's Jet Propulsion