Bus-sized asteroid 2025 MN88 to fly past Earth today
What's the story
A massive asteroid, dubbed 2025 MN88, is set to fly by Earth today. The space rock, which is about the size of a bus at roughly 20m wide, will be traveling at over 28,000km/h. It will come pretty close, about 459,000km away, but scientists have confirmed that there's no danger from this particular flyby.
Safety standards
Asteroid poses no threat to our planet
NASA only classifies asteroids as "dangerous" if they are larger than 150m and come within 7.4 million kilometers of Earth. By these standards, MN88 is neither large nor close enough to be considered a threat. The asteroid belongs to the Aten group, a category of near-Earth objects that cross Earth's orbit but pose no immediate danger.
Future preparations
ISRO is working on planetary defense initiatives
In light of potential future threats, India's space agency, the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), is ramping up its planetary defense initiatives. The agency is working with global partners such as NASA and the European Space Agency (ESA) to monitor larger space rocks that could pose a risk. The move comes as part of a broader strategy to bolster international cooperation in tracking and mitigating potential asteroid threats.