Giant asteroid Apophis will fly past Earth in 2029
Giant asteroid “Apophis” will approach Earth in just three years
A celestial body the size of three football fields will approach our planet on April 13, 2029, NASA scientists report. The distance between the object and the surface will be about 32,000 kilometers — closer than most orbital satellites.
Such a large object will be visible to many residents of the Eastern Hemisphere. If specialists' calculations are correct, the 2029 flyby will become the first in history when such a phenomenon can be observed using modern technology.
During the approach, Earth's gravity can “stretch” and “compress” the asteroid, causing landslides on it. This reaction will help scientists peer inside the body, which is thought to consist of untouched material from the early Solar System.
Apophis was first discovered in 2004 and quickly took the role of the “main boogeyman” among asteroids capable of destroying Earth. That is why it was named Apophis — after the ancient Egyptian god of chaos. And although the object is still classified as “potentially hazardous,” decades of observations have completely ruled out the threat of a collision both in 2029 and for the next hundred years
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