A newly discovered bus-sized asteroid is set to buzz Earth late on March 12, passing closer than the moon as it zips silently beneath Antarctica, posing no risk to our planet or its natural satellite.
The solar system asteroid will make its closest approach to Earth at 11:27 p.m. EDT on March 12 (0327 GMT on March 13), when it will pass 197,466 miles (317,791 kilometers) from the southern hemisphere.
At the point of closest approach NASA estimates that the 32-72 foot-wide (10-22 meters) asteroid — designated 2026 EG1 — will be travelling at a blistering 21,513 miles per hour (34,621 kilometers per hour) relative to Earth and will swiftly pass us by, after performing a distant flyby of the moon.
