Asteroid 2018 CD3 to flyby Earth at 0.93 LD on February 15

A newly discovered asteroid designated 2018 CD3 will flyby Earth at a distance of 0.93 LD / 0.00238 AU (~356 042 km / 221 234 miles) at 19:42 UTC on February 15, 2018. This is the 14^th known asteroid to flyby Earth within 1 lunar distance since the start of the year.

Asteroid 2018 CD3 belongs to the Apollo group of asteroids. It was first observed at Mt. Lemmon Survey on February 10, 5 days before its closest approach.

This asteroid has an estimated diameter between 5.3 and 12 m (17.7 – 39.4 feet) and is expected to flyby Earth at a speed (relative to the Earth) of 7.66 km/s.

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

This is the 14^th known asteroid to flyby Earth within 1 lunar distance since the start of the year and the 6^th this month. A total of 54 known asteroids flew past Earth within 1 lunar distance in 2017.

Reference:

Asteroid 2018 CD3 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.