On Friday, a massive asteroid, roughly the size of a skyscraper, will come within 1.7 million miles of Earth near Cape Canaveral, Florida.

Do not be concerned: It is impossible for it to reach us as it will travel seven times the distance between Earth and the moon.

According to NASA’s Center for Near Earth Object Studies, the cosmic object measures between 690 feet and 1,575 feet (210 meters and 480 meters) in diameter. This puts it in the same size range as notable buildings like the Empire State Building in New York City and the Willis Tower in Chicago.

In 2008, scientists found an asteroid known as 2008 OS7. It will not return to our vicinity until 2032, but the next encounter will be much further away at a distance of 45 million miles (72 million kilometers).

This week, there will be multiple encounters with asteroids that pose no threat to Earth. On Friday, three smaller asteroids, each only tens of yards (meters) wide, will pass by harmlessly. Two more will follow on Saturday. On Sunday, an asteroid approximately half the size of 2008 0S7 will come within 4.5 million miles (7.3 million kilometers) of Earth.

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Source: wral.com