AN ASTEROID that could cause mass destruction if it was to hit Earth will be skimming past our planet next week.
Nasa has confirmed the giant space rock’s approach and will be keeping a close eye on all 3,280 feet of it.
Asteroid 2002 PZ39 is predicted to travel past our planet at speeds of more than 35,500 miles per hour.
It will be making what Nasa is calling a “close approach” on Saturday, February 15 at around around 11.05am GMT (6.05am EST)..
A space rock as big as this one has the potential to instantly kill millions on impact.
Famed doomsday asteroid Bennu is 1,680 foot smaller than 2002 PZ39 and even that would likely result in instant the vaporisation of anything in its path.
Experts think that such a large asteroid would have an impact similar to that of a major nuclear attack.
You would be killed instantly – before you even knew what was happening – if you happened to be in a one mile radius of the impact zone.
Fires, earthquakes and even tsunamis could even be caused as secondary effects.
NASA said: “We believe anything larger than one to two kilometres – one kilometre is a little more than one-half mile – could have worldwide effects.”
Luckily for us, the asteroid should miss us by more than 3.58 million miles.
However, any fast moving space object that comes within around 4.65 million miles is considered to be “potentially hazardous” by cautious space organisations.
Here's what you need to know, according to Nasa...
In other space news, Nasa has revealed what Earth would look like with no sea.
Eeire close-ups of Mars reveal the crash site of a doomed probe.
And, Elon Musk has revealed plans to put a million people on Mars by 2050.
What are your thoughts on this huge asteroid? Let us know in the comments…
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