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16 asteroids are set to fly past Earth in June — one that's more than twice the size of the Taj Mahalhttps://www.businessinsider.in/science/space/news/16-asteroids-are-set-to-fly-past-earth-in-june-one-thats-more-than-twice-the-size-of-the-taj-mahal/slidelist/76281224.cms2020-06-09T15:39:45+05:30

16 asteroids are set to fly past Earth in June — one that's more than twice the size of the Taj Mahal

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Jun 9, 2020, 15:39 IST

16 asteroids are set to fly past Earth in June — one that's more than twice the size of the Taj Mahal — Representative image of what an asteroid would look like if it were close to EarthPixabay
Another 16 asteroids are set to fly past Earth in the month of June.
2010 BY65 is the largest by far with a diameter that’s twice the size of the Taj Mahal.
June 14 will be the busiest day in space, with three asteroids flying past Earth within a span of 12 hours.
June is a busy month for asteroids with over 17 asteroids that have already flown past the Earth within the first nine days — and there are still another 16 to go.

Most of these asteroids are small and will be flying past the planet at a safe distance. 2020 KY, for instance, set to zoom past Earth on June 10 is only as big as an aeroplane and will be 5.8 million kilometres away.

Others, however, are bigger. 2010 BY65 is will make its close approach on June 24. It’s more than twice the size of the Taj Mahal with a diameter between 140 metres to 310 metres. That means at its widest point — it's even bigger than the Eiffel Tower.

Meanwhile, June 14 is going to a busy day in space with three asteroids set to make their close approach to Earth within the span of fewer than 12 hours.

These asteroids are labelled ‘potentially hazardous’ by the Centre of Near-Earth Object Studies (CNEOS). The agency classifies them by size, speed and the how far away they will be from Earth as they fly past.

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The biggest asteroids to fly past Earth in June

The biggest asteroids to fly past Earth in June — BI India

The closest asteroids to fly past Earth in June

The closest asteroids to fly past Earth in June — BI India
Lunar Distance (LD) is the measurement used. It is comparable how far the asteroid will be from the Earth in relation to how far the Moon is from the planet.
An LD of 1 would mean that it will be as close to Earth as the Moon — approximately 384,400 kilometres. An LD of 2 would mean twice as far and an LD of 3 would mean thrice as far. The lower the LD, the closer the asteroid will be to Earth.

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The fastest asteroids to fly past Earth in June

The fastest asteroids to fly past Earth in June — BI India

Full list of asteroids to fly past Earth in June

Full list of asteroids to fly past Earth in June — BI India
It’s important to note that while the Centre of Near-Earth Object Studies (CNEOS) tags these asteroids as ‘potentially hazardous’ — it’s only to ensure that someone is keeping an eye on them in case they change trajectory or pose an imminent threat. As on now, all of them — close and far — will be far from Earth and don’t pose a risk of actually crashing into the planet.

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