Two asteroids will pass close to Earth. And they will be visible in real time thanks to an observation point in Tuscany. The dates are those of Thursday 27th e Saturday 29th June.
What are
They are called “2011 UL21” e “2024 MK” and they are two asteroids classified by experts as “potentially hazardous”: between June 27 and 29 they will reach their point of maximum proximity to Earth, respectively at 6.6 million km and 295,000 km from our planet.
Zero dangers
Let’s be clear. There is no danger to Earth. Let’s put possible apocalyptic or catastrophic scenarios out of our minds. The “double passage” of asteroids near the Earth will only be a fascinating educational phenomenon.
Let’s get to know them better: how and where to see them
The asteroid that will pass near the Earth on Thursday 27 June is called – as previously mentioned – “2011 UL21” and is approximately 2.5 kilometers large. The passage near our planet at 10.16 pm Italian time. At this time the asteroid will therefore also be visible with amateur telescopes. Furthermore, according to the archive of Center for Near Earth Object Studies (CNEOS) of Jet Propulsion Laboratory“2011 UL21” is among the ten largest asteroids that have passed within 7.5 million km of our planet since 1900. When the asteroid reaches its minimum distance from Earth, on June 27, it will be visible only in the southern hemisphere. In the days immediately following, however, it will also become visible at our latitudes: it will reach its maximum apparent brightness in the night sky between Friday 28 e Saturday 29th June. It will not be visible to the naked eye, but it will be bright enough to be spotted with even not-too-large telescopes. The asteroid will remain in our skies for the entire first week of July. As for “2024 MK”, even in this case at the point of maximum approach – June 29, 2024 – it will not be visible from the northern hemisphere, and therefore from Italy, where it will be observable starting from the night between Saturday 29 and Sunday 30 June. It rises around 9 pm in an eastward direction in the constellation of Pegasus and moves during the night within this constellation in the direction of the Andromeda galaxy. During the night, the asteroid reaches its maximum height above the horizon of about 75° in a southerly direction around 5 am. It will not be visible to the naked eye, to see it you will need at least a small telescope of 15-20 cm in diameter. “2024 MK” was discovered on June 16, 2024 by the Atlas telescope network. There is still uncertainty about its physical properties, but it is initially thought to have a diameter of about 150-200 meters, with a rotation period around the Sun of about 3.3 years.
The observatory in Tuscany
The event will be followed live by the robotic telescopes of the Virtual Telescope Project installed in Manciano, in the province of Grosseto. In particular, Gianluca Masi of the Virtual Telescope Project will show in live streaming “2011 UL21”, which will be filmed in the sky thanks to the telescopes installed in Maremma.
