Asteroid passes near Earth

MANILA, Philippines - The asteroid 99942 Apophis passed near the Earth yesterday but the Philippine Atmospheric, Geophysical and Astronomical Services Administration (PAGASA) said it was still too far away to cause any discernible effects on the planet.

 Jose Mendoza, chief of  PAGASA’s Space Sciences and Astronomy Section, said the asteroid was approximately 14 million kilometers from Earth at around 8 a.m.

The distance of the asteroid, which is almost 300 meters in size, even at its closest point was still too far away to affect even the Earth’s tides.

“There is not even a little effect on Earth,” Dela Cruz told The STAR.

“Actually tonight (Wednesday) is its closest approach to the Earth. It is observable using space camera via the Internet until Thursday,” he said.

Giant asteroids hitting the Earth have been the subject of several scientific studies, which was taken by a few as a possible scenario of near extinction.

Scientists said the odds of any one particular asteroid impacting the Earth are quite low, but it is still likely that the planet will be hit by another asteroid.

They said at the current rate in which small asteroids or meteorites hit the Earth, it is estimated that one large asteroid could impact the Earth every 100 million years or so.