On October 7, 2018, Asteroid 2018 EB passed the Earth at 15 lunar distances.
Back on April 4, 2018, after astronomer spotted it using the NEOWISE spacecraft, before it had passed at 10 times the distance between Earth and the Moon. 2018 EB is considered a potentially hazardous object because of the asteroids approach brings it within a close proximity to the Earth that could cause regional damage if it impacts us. NASA says it was confident that an impact was not going to happen during this pass and didn’t.
Asteroid 2018 EB is estimated to be over 500 feet in diameter, an average sized space rock, but that’s not the interesting part. The asteroid was discovered to have an orbiting moon.
Asteroid 2018 EB next closest approach will occur in 2047, when it will be less than 4 times the Earth-moon distance.
Related Articles and links:
https://www.minorplanetcenter.net/mpec/K18/K18E26.html
https://ssd.jpl.nasa.gov/sbdb.cgi?sstr=2018%20EB&orb=1
https://tnc.network/news/
Rod is a blogger, writer, filmmaker, photographer, daydreamer who likes to cook. Rod produces and directs the web series, CUPIC: Diary of an Investigator. He is also the editor, producer and administrator of STM Daily News, a part of the TNC Network.