Newly Spotted Asteroid Just Zipped By Earth Grazing Path of Satellites in Geostationary Orbit

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  A car-sized asteroid discovered over the weekend made a close flyby of Earth yesterday (July 28), passing our planet at a range that rivals the orbits of some high-flying satellites. The asteroid 2020 OY4, which was first detected on Sunday (July 26), made its closest approach today at 1:31 a.m. EDT (0531 GMT) when it zipped by Earth at a speed of about 27,700 mph (44,600 km/h), according to the European Space Agency. The asteroid is just under 15 feet (5 meters) wide and posed no impact risk to Earth, but did approach the flight paths of geosynchronous satellites. ESA’s tool listed the closest distance as about 21,900 miles (35,170 km), or just inside the satellite orbit ring. Asteroids the size of 2020 OY4 fly by Earth several times a month, NASA officials have said in the past. This month (July 2020) three asteroids slightly larger than 2020 OY4 actually hit the Earth, but broke up harmlessly in the atmosphere, astronomers said.

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