3,000 Foot Wide Asteroid to Cruise by Earth This Month

I feel like it's 2020 again, either that or 2020 has bled through into in 2021. It figures that one of the largest asteroids known to man would want to do a fly-by in the middle of a freaking pandemic.

This asteroid, named 2001 FO32, is estimated to be about 3,000 feet diameter. To give that some perspective, that's 30 football fields end to end just in sheer girth. Wow! If you think it's size is impressive, wait until I tell you how fast this bad Larry is sailing through the night sky.

To put the speed into a bit more perspective, let's first talk about the speed of sound. Sound travels at a whopping 761 miles per hour. Speed can vary based on factors like air pressure and humidity, but overall that is insanely fast. 2001 FO32 is travelling at 77,000 miles per hour. That equates to 101 times the speed of sound. I don't even know how to envision that in my head. You'd definitely get stopped on the turnpike for those kinds of speeds.

According to MSN, the asteroid will be passing by at a proximity of about 1.25 million miles, which is still close enough to our planet to consider it a 'potentially hazardous ateroid'. It will pass by on March 21st and, though not visible to the naked eye, amateur stargazers should still be able to see it with a decent telescope.

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