Large Asteroid To Pass Close By Earth

An asteroid with the power to wipe out a small country will miss the Earth on Monday.

By Space War Editorial Team · Editorial process

Published July 2, 2006

An asteroid with the power to wipe out a small country will miss the Earth on Monday. Asteroid 2004 XP14 is nearly half a mile wide and was discovered in December 2004. It is in the "Apollo" class of asteroids, which are those that cross orbits with Earth.

Initial speculation by some scientists predicted the possibility of impact with Earth later this century, but that conclusion has now been ruled out.

When the asteroid passes Earth, it will be some 268,624 miles away, just slightly further away than the average distance of the Moon from Earth. A telescope will be required to view the asteroid, which will pass at 04:25 UTC time.

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Space War Editorial Team

The Space War Editorial Team produces content across our two editorial pillars: space industry news and Mind & Meaning. We cover launches, missions, satellites, defense, and the technology of getting humans to space, alongside the psychology of ambition, isolation, and meaning under extremes. Articles reflect our team's collective editorial process, source verification, drafting, technical review, and editing, rather than a single writer's work. Space War takes editorial responsibility for content under this byline. For more on how we work, see our editorial policy.