Astronomers identified Asteroid 99942 Apophis as one of the hazardous asteroids that could impact Earth after its discovery in 2004. It was feared to get dangerously close in 2029 and 2036, but the impact risks on these dates were eventually ruled out. Researchers still thought that there is still a possibility of an impact in 2068 until NASA announced on Friday that this will not likely happen. Based on new radar observations and an orbit analysis of the ear-Earth object (NEO), the US space agency concluded that there is no risk of Apophis crashing on our planet in 2068.
March 5 flyby
On March 5, the asteroid passed by within a distance of 10 million miles from Earth, allowing astronomers to make better observations. They used the 230-foot radio antenna at the Deep Space Network’s Goldstone Deep Space Communications Complex in California to precisely track the asteroid’s movement, and the 330-foot Green Bank Telescope in West Virginia to enable imaging of the object. Data from the observations enabled the astronomers to conclude that the NEO will not pose any threat for the next 100 years. Apophis will fly by Earth again on April 13, 2029. It will get close enough to our planet to be visible to observers in the Eastern Hemisphere without the aid of telescopes. Watch the video: Animation of Asteroid Apophis’ 2029 Close Approach with Earth
