Asteroid Due To Miss Wrexham By Just 17,000 Miles! LIVE VIDEO

Tonight will see Asteroid 2012DA14 brush past our planet at a mere distance of 17,200 miles, closer than some of our orbiting satellites.

The Asteroid measures 50 meters across and it will be at its closest to The Earth at around 7:26pm tonight. It will pass from the southern to northern hemisphere at a speed of 17,450 miles per hour and will also set the record for the closest pass of any known asteroid since surveys began in the mid 1990’s.

There is no chance of a collision with earth, and the reported meteor in Russia this morning is not linked to the passing of Asteroid 2012DA14. Wrexham has seen two similar ‘sky events’ recently, with one fireball in the sky in September (our report here) and the latest just a couple of weeks ago (report here!).

Even though it will be the closest pass it will not be visible with the naked eye, binoculars or a telescope will be needed in order to see it. The Asteroid will appear on the eastern horizon and will be visible for about four hours between 6pm and 10pm.

However, for those without binoculars or a telescope (or if you just want to stay in the warm!) Nasa Television will broadcast a live webcast, featuring commentary and images from telescopes around the world which will start at 7pm this evening – and we will be watching!

Anyone who does manage to spot it, or take a picture, please tweet us @wrexham or email [email protected] , or post on the Wrexham.com Forums!

WATCH THE METEOR LIVE:

You can see more on this type of thing by reading our Wrexham.com Star Gazing Guide for February Here.