Asteroid 2018 FE3 flew past Earth at 0.38 LD, 3 days before discovery

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A newly discovered asteroid 2018 FE3 flew past our planet at a very close distance of 0.38 LD / 0.00098 AU (~146 605 km / 91 096 miles) at 07:06 UTC on March 18, 2018.

This object belongs to the Aten group of asteroids. It was first observed at Catalina Sky Survey on March 21, 3 days after it made its closest approach.

Its estimated diameter is between 9.9 and 22 m (32.5 – 72 feet).

[ Ephemeris | Orbit Diagram | Orbital Elements | Physical Parameters | Close-Approach Data ]

This was the 21^st known asteroid to flyby Earth within 1 lunar distance since the start of the year. It was followed by 2018 FQ3 on March 19.

Reference:

Asteroid 2018 FE3 at Minor Planet Center; at CNEOS

Featured image: The green line indicates the object’s apparent motion relative to the Earth, and the bright green marks are the object’s location at approximately one-hour intervals. The Moon’s orbit is grey. The blue arrow points in the direction of Earth’s motion and the yellow arrow points toward the Sun. Credit: Minor Planet Center.