Close Call: Airplane-Sized Asteroid Spotted Just 2 Days After Near Miss with Earth

A newly-discovered asteroid, named 2023 NT1, passed within 1/4 the distance to the moon on July 13, 2023, but was not detected until July 15 due to approaching Earth from the direction of the sun. The asteroid, estimated to be up to 200 feet (60 meters) in size, is comparable in size to the asteroid that caused Meteor Crater in Arizona. Fortunately, it posed no threat to Earth. The European Space Agency (ESA) has a planned mission called NEOMIR to detect asteroids coming from the sun's direction, but it is not scheduled for launch until 2030.