Experts at America's space agency, NASA, are watching a 30-meter wide asteroid as it comes near the Earth in March.

According to NASA, the asteroid has no chance of hitting Earth. It could fly as close as within 17,700 kilometers of the planet on March 5.

Paul Chodas leads the space agency's Near-Earth Objects Studies office. He said in a statement, "The possibilities of collision on any of the three future flyby dates are far too small to be of any real concern."

An asteroid measuring 30-meters wide will come near to the Earth March 5. It will miss hitting the Earth by 17,700 kilometers.

This asteroid was discovered in 2013 and is named TX68.

The asteroid is about twice the size of another one that exploded over Russia in 2013. That explosion shattered glass, destroyed buildings, and injured more than 1,000 people.

If an asteroid the size of TX68 entered the Earth's atmosphere and exploded, NASA estimates it would be twice as powerful as the 2013 Russian asteroid blast.

TX68 is expected to approach the Earth again on September 28, 2017.

Jim Dresbach adapted this story for Learning English. Hai Do was the editor.

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Words in This Story

asteroid – n. any one of thousands of small planets that circle around the sun

flyby – n. a flight of a meteor, asteroid or spacecraft past a planet or moon

shatter – v. to break suddenly into many small pieces