A massive and potentially hazardous asteroid will break into the Earth’s orbit this weekend.
But don’t worry about making Sunday plans – NASA said there’s no chance the asteroid will impact the Earth.
According to NASA, 4660 Nereus is considered “potentially hazardous” because of its size – roughly the size of three football fields – and proximity to Earth. There is no threat of the space rock hitting out planet, however, but it will be the closest pass by the Earth for Nereus in 20 years.
Nereus, according to Livescience.com, is egg-shaped at 1,082 feet long and is traveling into the Earth’s orbit at a relatively slow speed of 14,700 mph. At its closest, it will be roughly 2.4 million miles away, about 10 times the distance between the Earth and the moon.
The closest approach will take place on Dec. 11 before 10 a.m. CST. It will be too faint to see with the naked eye but visible with a telescope.
It was first discovered in 1982 and NASA has been tracking its orbit since.
Nereus is a valuable meteor, thanks to the minerals it contains. Asterank, a database that monitors asteroids, estimates its nickel, iron and cobalt deposits are worth some $4.71 billion.
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