An asteroid discovered days ago will narrowly miss Earth

An asteroid identified as 2026JH2 will safely pass Earth on Tuesday, coming as close as 91,593 kilometers—about one-quarter the distance between Earth and the Moon—according to the European Space Agency. Discovered on May 10 by astronomers at the Mount Lemmon Survey in Tucson, Arizona, the object belongs to the Apollo class of asteroids, whose orbits intersect with Earth’s. The flyby will occur just before 10 a.m. New Zealand Time, with NASA’s JPL Small-Body Database confirming the timing. Despite its proximity, the asteroid poses no danger, as it will remain well outside Earth’s atmosphere. Richard Binzel, a planetary sciences professor at MIT, noted that such close passes by small asteroids happen regularly, though modern surveys have only recently become sensitive enough to detect them. The asteroid’s exact size is uncertain because optical telescopes measure only visible light, leaving its reflectivity unknown. Patrick Michel, an astrophysicist at France’s National Centre for Scientific Research, explained that infrared observations would be needed for precise sizing, but these are rare for newly discovered objects. Estimates place 2026JH2 between 15 and 30 meters in diameter, comparable to the Chelyabinsk meteor (2013) or the Tunguska event (1908), though it will not enter Earth’s atmosphere. While the asteroid’s trajectory is currently safe, Michel acknowledged long-term unpredictability, though no known asteroid threatens Earth within current forecasting timelines. The object originated from the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter, where collisions and Jupiter’s gravity occasionally send small asteroids toward Earth.