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- The 2018 asteroid RC was spotted Monday and will make its closest approach to Earth Saturday night.
- It will come within 136,000 miles of Earth, about half the distance to the moon.
An asteroid the size of a 17-story building will pass the Earth this weekend.
The 2018 asteroid RC was spotted Monday by the ATLAS (Asteroid Terrestrial Impact System) warning system of the University of Hawaii. It measures up to 233 feet in diameter, which corresponds to the height of the 17-storey Kajima building. in Los Angeles, notes from CNET.
The asteroid will make its closest approach to Earth Saturday night, less than 136,000 mileswhich is about half the distance to the moon, reports Earthsky.org.
For astronomers equipped with a telescope, the asteroid should be easily detected, if time permits.
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According to Linda Lam, meteorologist for weather.com, clouds and rain are expected in much of the eastern United States, northeast Texas, including much of the Midwest. The northern and northern plains and the central Rockies will also experience some showers and storms.
"The best chance for an essentially clear sky will be from the west coast to the southwest, as well as parts of the central plains," Lam said. "A few places in the southeast, New England and the upper Mississippi Valley could see breaks in the clouds."
For those who prefer to watch online from the comfort of their sofa, the Virtual Telescope project will live streaming the journey of the asteroid after Earth, from 18h EDT Saturday.
The main mission of The Weather Company is to report on weather, the environment and the importance of science in our lives. This story does not necessarily represent the position of our parent company, IBM.
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