An asteroid twice the size of the Statue of Liberty is reportedly on course to “closely approach” Earth later this month. NASA has added the asteroid – named 2023 CL3 – to its Earth Close Approaches list, which carefully monitors large space rocks it needs to keep tabs on.
Estimated to be more than double the size of the Statue of Liberty at up to 656 feet wide, 2023 CL3 would cause serious damage if it made impact with Earth. It’s expected to miss Earth by a distance of just under 4.5 million miles on May 24, it has been reported.
Within the context of the sheer vastness of space, that’s considered to be a fairly narrow margin.
READ MORE: NASA warns Earth ‘three times more likely’ to be hit by asteroid
Any asteroid larger than a specific size that comes within 4.65 million miles of Earth is deemed to be “potentially hazardous” by space agencies, the Sun reports. Some experts have raised fears that Earth is not prepared to defend itself from a collision with an asteroid that could put an end to human life on the planet.
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SpaceX CEO Elon Musk once caused alarm when he tweeted: “A big rock will hit Earth eventually and we currently have no defense.”
Nasa is reported to be investigating a number of different possible defence mechanisms to prevent such a devastating outcome. The space agency launched its Double Asteroid Redirection Test mission last year. The experiment proved NASA’s ability to alert the orbit of an asteroid called Dimorphos.