According to forecasts, the asteroid will have a diameter of about 914 meters, and the width is from 440 to 680 meters. His name - 2001 FO32 - Tributes of respect for the research program Lincoln Near-Earth Asteroid Research (Linear) during which astronomers and opened an asteroid.
The heavenly body will pass by the Earth in late March. Its speed will be almost 124 thousand kilometers per hour. This is higher than the speed from which most asteroids flies. The reason for such rapid rapprochement is an unusual orbit of this astronomical object. It is tilted at 39 degrees to the plane of the Earth orbit.
2001 FO32 approaches the planet for a distance of about two million kilometers. It is five times more than a distance to the moon. In an astronomical scale, it is a bit, therefore 2001 FO32 was classified as "potentially dangerous asteroid". However, there is no threat of his collision with Earth. "We found an asteroid 20 years ago and well studied the trajectory of his orbits around the sun," added Paul Chodas, director of the center for studying the near-earth object.
"Meeting" March 21 will provide astronomers the opportunity to receive a more accurate idea of the size of the asteroid and its albedo. And also know its approximate composition. In particular, studying the spectrum of light reflected from the surface of the asteroid, astronomers are going to measure the "imprint" of the chemistry of minerals.
Studies intend to conduct with the help of a 3.2-meter infrared telescope located on the top of the Hawaiian Island of Manau-Kea and the SPEX infrared spectrograph. "Now there is a little about the facility, and thanks to its approach, we can learn something new," said Lance Benner, a scientist from the NASA reactive laboratory.
The agency also suggests astronomers of lovers to conduct research on their own. So, Paul Chodas said that the asteroid will be the most striking object when driving through the southern sky. He hopes that lovers will be able to witness this phenomenon. "Amateur astronomers in the southern hemisphere will be able to see an asteroid in the evening before the closest rapprochement. But for this they will need a medium-sized telescope with a hole of at least eight inches, as well as the map, "the chodas summed up.
Source: Naked Science