Earth had a close encounter Thursday morning when Asteroid 2019 OK sped by at 1:22 GMT, at a speed of nearly 55,000 miles (88,500 kilometers) per hour. The closest it came to Earth was just under 45,000 miles (72,500 km), a safe distance, but still much less than the distance between the Earth and Moon.
Astronomers only noticed the space rock within the past few days, when astronomers at SONEAR Observatory in Brazil picked it up. Because it’s such a newcomer, there’s still a lot astronomers aren’t sure about, from its orbit to its size, which ranges between 187 to 426 feet (57 to 130 meters) across.
While Earth gets a few asteroid visitors that buzz closer than the Moon every year, this one is the largest so far in 2019.
NASA and other space agencies keep close tabs on Near-Earth Objects, those space rocks whose paths come even remotely ...
