WHAT IS THE 2002 AJ129 ASTEROID AND IS IT A THREAT?
The 2002 AJ129 asteroid has been classed a 'potentially hazardous' by Nasa and will fly past at speeds of 67,000mph (107,826kmh).
This makes it nearly 15 times faster than the world's quickest manned aircraft - the hypersonic North American X-15, which travelled at 4,520mph (7,300kmh).
The asteroid is around 0.7 miles (1.1km) wide - making it only slightly smaller than Hyde Park which is around 0.9 miles (1.4km) across.
It is set to pass by our planet on the 4th February at a distance of around 2,615,128 miles (4,208,641km) away - which is relatively close in space terms.
For reference, the distance between the Earth and the moon is 238,855 miles (384,400 km).
Nasa describes asteroids as 'hazardous' if they come within 4,600,000 miles (7,403,00km) of our planet.
However, it does not pose an actual threat of colliding with our planet for the foreseeable future, Nasa says.
'We have been tracking this asteroid for over 14 years and know its orbit very accurately,' said Paul Chodas, manager of Nasa's Center for Near-Earth Object Studies at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California.
'Our calculations indicate that asteroid 2002 AJ129 has no chance - zero - of colliding with Earth on Feb. 4 or any time over the next 100 years.'
Read more:
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencet...asteroid-flying-past-Earth.html#ixzz563gbhLQj
