LONDON: NASA recently released images of this asteroid, which is considered a contact binary, or one that has two lobes stuck to each other.
The closest asteroid ever to zip by Earth apparently occurred on July 25, 2015 where the asteroid 1999 JD6 made its nearest pass on our planet, making it the first asteroid in more than 100 years the closest one to brush against Earth.
This asteroid also measures 1.2 miles across where NASA detected it using radio telescopes, obtaining its measurements from size, shape and rotation.
Vid NASA scientists have captured grainy images of a peculiar-shaped, dark asteroid, dubbed “Space Peanut”, which buzzed past Earth last weekend.
“Radar imaging has shown that about 15 per cent of near-Earth asteroids larger than 600 feet (about 180 metres), including 1999 JD6, have this sort of lobed, peanut shape”, said NASA Jet Propulsion Lab boffin Lance Benner.
