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Asteroid 2018 BC to flyby Earth at 0.73 LD on January 19

asteroid-2018-bc-to-flyby-earth-at-0-73-ld-on-january-19

A newly discovered asteroid designated 2018 BC will flyby Earth at a distance of 0.73 LD / 0.00189 AU (~ 282 739 km / 175 686 miles) on January 19, 2018. This is the second known asteroid to flyby Earth within 1 lunar distance since January 1, 2018, and 55th since January 1, 2017.

Asteroid 2018 BC was first observed at Catalina Sky Survey on January 17, 2018. Its estimated diameter is between 3.7 and 8.3 m (12 – 27.2 feet) and it belongs to the Apollo group of asteroids.

This asteroid will flyby Earth at 20:23 UTC on January 19 at a speed (relative to the Earth) of 2.67 km/s:

Ephemeris | Orbit Diagram | Orbital Elements | Physical Parameters | Close-Approach Data ]

This is the second asteroid to flyby Earth within 1 lunar distance this year after 2018 AH on January 2, 2018. While 2018 AH has an estimated diameter of 84 – 190 m (275 – 693 feet), making it the largest known near-Earth object to flyby Earth within 1 lunar distance since 2011 and the 9th largest known near-Earth object (asteroids + comets) to flyby Earth within 1 lunar distance ever, 2018 BC's estimated diameter is only between 3.7 and 8.3 m (12 – 27.2 feet).

Its next flyby is expected at 08:07 UTC on May 21, 2019 at a distance of 0.39 AU.

Reference:

Asteroid 2018 BC at Minor Planet Center; at CNEOS

Featured image: Featured image: The green line indicates the object's apparent motion relative to the Earth, and the bright green marks are the object's location at approximately one-hour intervals. The Moon's orbit is grey. The blue arrow points in the direction of Earth's motion and the yellow arrow points toward the Sun. Credit: Minor Planet Center.

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