An asteroid three times the size of the Statue of Liberty passed dangerously close to Earth at the autumnal equinox

On September 22, the autumn equinox brought to Earth about 12 hours of light, 12 hours of night, but also a space rock three times larger than the Statue of Liberty.

This asteroid, called 2021 NY1, passed close to our planet, according to NASA, but is still seen as a Near-Earth (NEO) object because it was about 310 million kilometers from the Sun. That is, it was relatively close to Earth at a distance of 1.5 million kilometers.

While asteroids of this kind do not pose a threat to life on Earth, NASA monitors all these flying objects to ensure that their orbit does not change in the future, bringing them closer to a collision with our planet.

Studying the characteristics of NEOs can also reveal new information about the first days of the solar system, as most asteroids are rock fragments originating from that time.

Asteroid 2020 HQ passed closest to our planet without it burning in the atmosphere or hitting the surface. It was located just 2950 kilometers above the Indian Ocean last year.