Huge asteroid the size of the Great Pyramid of Giza will skim past Earth at 56,000mph today, NASA warns

A immense asteroid almost nan size of nan Great Pyramid of Giza will skim past Earth today, NASA has warned. 

The 120m (394ft) asteroid, scientifically named 2024 JZ, will walk nan satellite astatine a staggering velocity of 56,000 mph (90,123) - 65 times faster than a bullet. 

But location is nary request to caput for nan last day bunker conscionable yet since this asteroid will safely past Earth astatine a region of 2.6 cardinal miles (4.2 cardinal km). 

While this mightiness sound acold away, nan asteroid is still classed arsenic a 'near-Earth object' (NEO) by NASA.  

Dr Edward Bloomer, elder astronomer astatine Royal Greenwich Observatory, told MailOnline: 'Today's passing is not a interest astatine all, this is not nan benignant of point we should beryllium worrying about.'

NASA writes: 'NEOs are comets and asteroids that person been nudged by nan gravitational attraction of adjacent planets into orbits that let them to participate nan Earth's neighbourhood.

'Composed mostly of h2o crystal pinch embedded particulate particles, comets primitively formed successful nan acold outer planetary strategy while astir of nan rocky asteroids formed successful nan warmer soul star strategy betwixt nan orbits of Mars and Jupiter.'

A NEO is defined arsenic immoderate entity that comes within 1.3 astronomical units (AU) (120.8 cardinal miles) of nan sun and hence wrong 0.3 AU (27.8 cardinal miles) of Earth's orbit.

Asteroids are defined arsenic 'potentially hazardous' if they comes wrong 0.05 astronomical units (4.65 cardinal miles) of Earth and are larger than 140 meters (459 feet) successful diameter. 

Even though 2024 JZ will beryllium astatine a perfectly safe region astatine conscionable 0.028 AU from Earth, this is considered comparatively adjacent successful astronomical terms. 

There will besides beryllium an moreover person miss happening this evening arsenic a mini asteroid named 2024 JT3 passes wrong conscionable 12,000 miles (19,300 km) of Earth.

However Juan Luis Cano, of nan ESA's Planetary Defence Office, reassured MailOnline that Earth is 'absolutely' safe.

Mr Cano says location is 'no anticipation of hitting nan Earth.'

He adds: 'In immoderate case, a 5-10 m entity would typically disintegrate successful nan ambiance conscionable releasing immoderate mini meteorites to ground.' 

NEOs are monitored by a web of master and unpaid astronomers who observe objects passing done nan star system. 

Through their efforts, dozens of NEOs are spotted each period and their paths are predicted pinch a precocious grade of accuracy. 

In fact, ample objects specified arsenic 2024 JZ passing done Earth's orbit are truthful regular that nan ESA lists this asteroid arsenic a 'very predominant event'. 

The overwhelming mostly of these objects pain up successful nan planet's ambiance and are seen by america arsenic shooting stars, alternatively than hitting nan ground. 

Each twelvemonth nan Earth moreover passes done respective dense clouds of debris near by comets which create meteor showers for illustration this month's Eta Aquariids.

What makes NEOs different from these meteors is that they are ample capable to perchance walk done nan ambiance undestroyed.

And while today's adjacent brushwood is not a concern, Dr Bloomer says that location is simply a consequence of an effect astatine immoderate constituent successful nan future. 

'We're benignant of gambling each day,' he said. 

'If 2024 JZ were connected a threat intercept course, that would beryllium a large problem because it's a large aged chunk of stone moving beautiful quickly.' 

During nan 1908 Tunguska Event, an asteroid little than half nan size of 2024 JZ exploded complete an area of Siberian forest, flattening 830 quadrate miles of trees. 

Likewise, Dr Bloomer points retired that nan Chelyabinsk meteor which damaged 7,200 buildings and injured 1,491 group successful Russia was only 20m (65 feet) successful diameter. 

Most worrying was nan truth that nan Chelyabinsk meteor was antecedently undetected erstwhile it collided pinch Earth. 

As Mr Cano explains, while location is presently nary applicable threat, 'the existent problem resides connected nan truth that location are still galore NEOs to beryllium found.'

Luckily, NASA has already invested successful methods to protect nan satellite from oncoming asteroids. 

In November 2021, the abstraction agency launched nan DART mission which sent a outer ploughing into nan broadside of Dimorphos, an asteroid astir 6.8 cardinal miles (10.9 cardinal km) from Earth. 

This trial showed that by hitting an asteroid pinch a mini outer early enough, nan mini effect could push it into a safe orbit by nan clip it reaches Earth. 

Dr Bloomer says: 'If you tin get to it faster and further successful beforehand past you really request to make a smaller effect to make a bigger deflection complete time.

'Whereas if you've sewage thing that you don't observe until peculiarly late, past you've sewage to make much efforts to deflect it successful time.' 

While this ngo whitethorn person only been a rehearsal, it proved that nan satellite could beryllium saved pinch capable anterior warning.