260-meter long asteroid to come closer to earth on April 1. Should we worry?

New Delhi : On April 1, Earth will witness a close fly past of an asteroid that is around 260-meter long (approximately 3.5 times the size of a Taj Mahal).

The asteroid has been named 2007 FF1 and it will fly past Earth at a distance of 74,23,046 kilometers. According to the Centre for Near-Earth Object Studies (CNEOS), the asteroid will be approaching the planet at a high speed of 46,188 kilometers per hour and could had caused significant damage to earth in case of collision.

The Jet Propulsion Laboratory tracks such near earth objects and claims that the asteroid last came close to the planet in 2020; at that time it passed from a distance of 1,73,42,881 kilometers. It also predicted that after April 1, the asteroid will return in August 2035 and at that time the distance is expected to be 1,14,41,245 kilometers.

What are asteroids?

Asteroids are the abandoned rocks in the space which were created during the formation of solar system around 4.6 million years ago.

Should we worry about April 1 fly past?

Well, it do sound scary that an asteroid is approaching the Earth; especially when we know that one such incident had wiped out dinosaurs from the planet. But, in this case, there is no reason to worry as the collision is unlikely.