Asteroid (199145) 2005 YY128 will pass by Earth at a distance of 2.5 million miles on Feb. 15, but will pose no threat to our planet.
At its closest approach, asteroid 2005 YY128 will still be about 2.8 million miles from Earth, or 12 times the average distance between Earth and the moon. However, the asteroid poses no threat to our planet.
Scientists aren't sure exactly how big the asteroid is; estimates range from 1,900 to 4,265 feet in diameter, according to EarthSky.org . With its median size estimated at about 3,100 feet across, the asteroid would be about twice as wide as New York City's One World Trade Center is tall. NASA classifies the asteroid as a near-Earth object because its orbit brings it within 30 million miles of Earth's orbit. What's more, the space rock is technically a"potentially hazardous object " because it's larger than 492 feet and its orbit brings it within about 4.6 million miles of Earth's orbit, or 0.05 astronomical units, according to NASA.
Asteroid 2005 YY128 was discovered in 2005 by scientists using the Kitt Peak Observatory in Arizona. When scientists find a new asteroid, they report it to the International Astronomical Union's Minor Planet Center, housed at the Smithsonian Astrophysical Observatory in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Then, scientists all over the world can observe the asteroid and calculate its trajectory. All NEOs and PHOs are diligently monitored by NASA and other space agencies around the world.
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