A massive asteroid the size of Big Ben is hurtling towards Earth in a 'once in a decade' event – and it will be here in a matter of hours.
Given the name of 2023 DZ2 by NASA's experts, the giant rock will skim around 107,500 miles to Earth on Saturday evening – twice as close as the Moon.
If the worst had happened it's estimated that an impact would in 214 times the 'Fat Man' atomic bomb dropped on Nagasaki.
Asteroid 2023 D72 was only discovered on February 27 and it's making quite a stir in the astronomy world.
Saturday's approach could be visible to amateur astronomers with modest telescopes – if you live in Southeast Asia.
NASA's Asteroid Watch team revealed of the impeding close impact of the 300ft-wide rock.
They tweeted: “A newly discovered #asteroid named 2023 DZ2 will safely pass by Earth on Saturday at 100K+ miles away.
“While close approaches are a regular occurrence, one by an asteroid of this size (140-310 ft) happens only about once per decade, providing a unique opportunity for science.
“Astronomers with the International Asteroid Warning Network are using this close approach to learn as much as possible about 2023 DZ2 in a short time period."
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Strap yourself in (this may get bumpy)
Welcome to the Daily Star Spaced Out team’s live coverage of an incredible “once in a decade”event, as an asteroid the size of Big Ben speeds past Earth so close to us it will be nearer to us than the Moon at its nearest point in the flypast.
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