Wednesday, April 15, 2009

Asteroid Heading towards earth


(April 14) -- An asteroid the size of a 25-story building will come within 18,000 miles of Earth on April 13, 2029 -- closer than the communication satellites that orbit the planet, Discovery.com reported.

The asteroid, called Apophis, has only a 1 on in 45,000 chance of colliding with Earth. But it will then be back for another shot seven years after that.


It's hard for astronomers to determine what kind of threat Apophis poses in 2036 because its orbit will be bent by gravity during its 2029 flyby, Discovery reported.

During the 2029 visit, the asteroid is expected to be visible to the naked eye at night.