On Tuesday, April 9, an asteroid known as 2024 GJ2 was discovered. The asteroid passed by Earth today, April 11. The asteroid is about the size of a car and astronomers determined that it would come within a mere 12,000 miles of Earth, which is just three percent of the distance between Earth and the moon. According to the European Space Agency (ESA), 2024 GJ2 measures between 2.5 and 5 meters, making it a space rock that would burn up in Earth’s atmosphere if it had a more direct orbit intersecting with ours.
NASA has recorded almost 35,000 near-Earth asteroids to date, with very few of them posing any threat to the planet. While the recent passing of asteroid 2024 GJ2 was a close call, it ultimately posed no danger to Earth. Astronomers believe that the closest approach of the asteroid to Earth occurred at 2:28:42 p.m. EDT on Thursday, at a distance of 7,641 miles. The next closest flyby of 2024 GJ2 is not expected until 2093, according to the ESA’s near-Earth objects coordination center. This future approach is estimated to be around 127,970 miles from Earth
