New Delhi:
A pair of supermassive asteroids identified as 2000 QW7 and 2010 CO1 are all set to approach Earth on September 14. Classified as Near-Earth Objects by NASA's Centre for Near-Earth Object Studies (CNEOS), the supermassive space rocks will approach Earth within a 24-hour period. Notably, asteroid 2000 QW7 is as big as the world’s tallest building Burj Khalifa. Well, you must be hearing a lot about asteroids hovering all around the Earth. Importantly, an asteroid (space rock) can bring tsunamis, shock waves and flattening winds that could be catastrophic. The space rocks approach towards the Earth due to the gravitational forces that affect them. It is said that one day all life on the Earth will be extinct. Not only life, but the Earth will also extinct someday and an asteroid could be the possible reason. Shocked to hear that? However, a car-sized asteroid slams into the Earth's atmosphere about once in a year. On the other hand, an asteroid large enough to threaten the existence of life on Earth arrives once in every few million years.
Coming back to asteroid 200 QW7, the space rock measuring 2,133 feet (measuring between 290 and 650 metres) is larger than The Shard in London. Currently, the NASA's Centre for Near Earth Object Studies is monitoring its activities. It will approach towards Earth on September 14 at 7:54 pm EDT or 5.30 pm (IST). It is currently traveling at a speed of 14,361 miles per hour. Importantly, asteroid 200 QW7 is the biggest space rock to approach Earth this month. It was first detected on 26th August, 2000. During its closest approach, asteroid 2000 QW7 will be 0.035428 astronomical units(AU). Space materials are considered near-Earth objects if they pass within 1.3 astronomical units of Earth. An astronomical unit is the distance from Earth to the sun, or 149.6 million km.
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Asteroid 2000 QW7 is expected to return in Earth’s vicinity on October 19, 2038 and passes Earth every 19.04 years. Asteroid 2000 QW7 is also classified as an Armor asteroid by NASA.
On the other hand, asteroid 2010 CO1 will be the second space rock to approach Earth on 14th September and was detected on 31st January, 2010. According to the reports, asteroid 2010 CO1 is 260 metres wide and 120 metres long and is currently travelling at a speed of about 51,696 kmph. The asteroid’s closest approach will occur on Saturday (September 14) at around 4.42am BST or 9.30 pm IST.
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Asteroid 2010 CO1 has been classified by NASA as an Apollo Asteroid, as it is a Near-Earth Asteroid with very wide orbit with a perihelion distance less than 1.017 AU, and semi-major axis greater than 1 AU. The speedy asteroid, dubbed by NASA asteroid 2010 CO1, is headed towards Earth on a “Close Approach” trajectory. The asteroid has also been called “Potentially Hazardous” and can cause widespread damage if it strikes a populated area.
