HOUSTON — A 330-meter-wide asteroid, around the size of the Eiffel Tower, is heading towards Earth, and is expected to pass us by on December 11, 2021.
The asteroid, known as 4660 Nereus[j], is calculated to be passing about 2.4 million miles away from Earth, however The Scotsman explains that because its diameter is wider than 140 meters and it will approach Earth at less than half the distance from the Earth to the sun, it is classified as “potentially hazardous,” which means only a relatively slight deviation in its massive orbit could place it on a collision course with Earth and that that could cause “major regional damage.” An unlikely chance of a collision, however, is actually more likely in 2060, when 4660 Nereus will pass within just 745,000 miles of Earth on Valentine’s Day.