Asteroid 2016 QA2 made an exceptionally close flyby of our planet at 01:24 UTC on August 28, 2016, just hours after it was discovered. Its estimated size is 34 meters (111.5 feet), between 16 and 52 meters (52 – 170 feet). This is about twice as big as the asteroid…
In September or early October 2016, NASA will launch its first mission to return a sample of an asteroid to Earth. The Origins, Spectral Interpretation, Resource Identification, Security-Regolith Explorer (OSIRIS-REx) spacecraft will travel to the near-Earth…
Pan-STARRS 1 asteroid survey telescope on Haleakala, Hawaii has discovered Earth's new quasi-satellite. Designated as 2016 HO3, this newly discovered near-Earth object has been our planet's constant companion for almost a century. The asteroid is too…
A newly discovered asteroid 2016 LT1 will pass extremely close to Earth, between the Moon and Earth, at 20:25 UTC on June 7, 2016. This is a small asteroid discovered on June 4 by the Panstarrs survey in Hawaii. Its estimated size is about 4.2 to 9.5 meters (13.7…
Astronomers were watching comet Pan-STARRS (P/2016 BA14) on March 22 as it made the third closest-ever comet flyby of Earth in recorded history. At the time of its closest approach, the comet was about 3.6 million km (2.2 million miles) away from the surface of our…
Two Jupiter-family comets – 252P/LINEAR and P/2016 BA14 (PANSTARRS) – will safely fly past Earth on March 21 and 22, 2016 at a distance of 5.2 million km (3.3 million miles) and 3.5 million km (2.2 million miles), respectively. The two comets have intriguingly…
Newly discovered asteroid 2016 EF195 made a very close approach to Earth on March 11 and flew by us at 0.08 lunar distances. The closest approach occurred at 04:35 UTC at about 31 565 km (0.000211 AU / 0.08 LD / 19 613 miles) from the surface of our planet. This…
When comet C/2013 A1 (Siding Spring) made its historic encounter with planet Mars in October 2014, passing roughly 140 000 km (87 00 miles) from its surface, it wreaked havoc on the magnetic environment around Mars. The effect, temporary but profound, was measured…
Asteroid 2013 TX68, with an estimated size of 30 meters (100 feet), is expected to make a close flyby of Earth around 00:06 UTC on March 8, 2016. Discovered on October 6, 2013, by the Catalina Sky Survey, asteroid 2013 TX68's orbit is still quite uncertain, and…
A newly discovered asteroid named 2016 DV1 is expected to make a very close flyby of Earth on March 3, 2016. 2016 DV1 is an Apollo class asteroid discovered on February 28, 2016. Its estimated size is between 28 and 62 meters (92 to 203 feet), which is about twice…
