An asteroid the size of an eight-story building zipped past Earth on Tuesday, and two more asteroids each the size of an airplane are on their way Wednesday.
The giant asteroid, named 2023 TM3, was expected to come within 0.00111 astronomical units of the planet, scientists say. While that might not sound like much, it's actually equally to about 100,000 miles. By comparison, the moon orbits Earth at a distance of 240,000 miles, data indicates.
If you didn't see 2023 TM3 on Tuesday, you're probably not alone. According to NASA, the huge space rock flew by at a speed of 35,700 miles per hour.
NASA is continuously monitoring all known "near-Earth objects" to assess any impact risk they may pose. Near-Earth objects are asteroids and comets that come within 120 million miles of the Sun, which means they can circulate through the Earth's orbital neighborhood.
The majority of near-Earth objects pose no risk of impact, according to NASA. Others are known as "potentially hazardous asteroids" and are continuously monitored. Those are defined as asteroids that are more than about 460 feet in size with orbits that bring them as close as within 4.6 million miles of Earth's orbit.
The next five asteroids to fly close to earth are all expected to take place Wednesday, Oct. 11, including two each the size of an airplane.
One, called 2023 TF2, is approximately 89 feet in size and will be within 2.27 million miles of Earth. The other, 2023 RD11, is roughly 130 feet in size and will pass within 3 million miles of the planet.
Two other asteroids are each roughly the size of a house. The first, 2023 TE, is about 46 feet in size and will come within approximately 1 million miles of the planet. The other, 2023 TF4, is slightly larger at 49 feet in size but it won't come as close, only within 1.42 million miles of Earth.
The fifth asteroid is the smallest of the bunch but it's expected to make the closest pass to Earth. Named 2022 UX1, it is about 28 feet in size and will pass within 745,000 miles of the planet.
None of the asteroids are expected to pose any threat. While all five come within the 4.6 million miles to be considered potentially hazardous, they are nowhere near large enough (460 feet in size) to be considered threatening.