An asteroid is coming really close to the Earth this Sunday, within 25,000 miles of the planet. That's about one-tenth of the distance from the Earth to the moon.
Asteroid 2014 RC, will pass safely by us, and at its closest, will probably be over New Zealand. Astronomers estimate that it's a small celestial body, only about 60 feet in size.
Astronomers discovered the asteroid by using both the Catalina Sky Survey in Arizona and the Pan-STARRS 1 telescope in Hawaii. Both telescopes also confirmed the asteroid's location and trajectory.
However, for those watching the night sky, the naked eye cannot see this asteroid. Amateur astronomers with their own telescopes, though, may catch a glimpse of it as it quickly passes.
The asteroid will fly below Earth where many of our communications and weather satellites orbit the planet. Fortunately, it does not pose a threat to either Earth or those satellites, but its closeness allows astronomers and researchers the ability to learn more about asteroids.
While 2014 RC will not impact Earth, its orbit will bring it back to our planet's neighborhood in the future," writes NASA. "The asteroid's future motion will be closely monitored, but no future threatening Earth encounters have been identified."
Meanwhile, further in space, the European Space Agency's Rosetta spacecraft is preparing to land on an asteroid larger than Asteroid 2014 RC. Not only has that spacecraft become the first to orbit an asteroid, but it will also be the first to land a vehicle on an asteroid.
So far, the ESA is looking at five potential landing spots. The agency is currently analyzing and ranking each site. They'll choose one final site, along with a back-up, and make the announcement about their decision on Sept. 15.
"Based on the particular shape and the global topography of Comet 67P/ Churyumov-Gerasimenko, it is probably no surprise that many locations had to be ruled out," says Stephan Ulamec, ESA's Lander Manager.. "The candidate sites that we want to follow up for further analysis are thought to be technically feasible on the basis of a preliminary analysis of flight dynamics and other key issues - for example they all provide at least six hours of daylight per comet rotation and offer some flat terrain."
Rosetta will send its Philae Lander to the asteroid on Nov. 11. There, the lander will examine and photograph the asteroid, sending the information back to scientists for review.
