(ORDO NEWS) — A space rock about 140 meters in size is approaching Earth, and on December 15 it should approach as close as possible to our planet.
People in the Southern Hemisphere will see it during the close, but those in the Northern Hemisphere will have the chance to see it until December 19th.
The European Space Agency (ESA) has named it the “Christmas asteroid”, or 2015 RN35. Very little is known about this asteroid.
Currently, astronomers have only a rough idea of its size, but they do not know what it is made of, and do not even fully understand what its orbit is.
The asteroid does not pose a danger to Earth due to its small size and distance from our planet, about 686,000 kilometers – just under two lunar distances.
This asteroid is quite difficult to see, but ESA astronomers say a telescope 30 centimeters long or more will be able to observe it.
Amateur astronomers can now use the new ESA Asteroid Toolkit to help find an asteroid.
This month, the tool was released to the public for both professional and amateur astronomers, as well as the media and schools seeking to educate people about asteroids.
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