Huge Asteroid Will Zip By Earth in November

A massive space rock will fly by Earth in November, and astronomers already are jazzed about getting a rare close-up view, reports Universe Today. The asteroid, named 2005 YU55, is about the size of an aircraft carrier and will come within about 200,000 miles of Earth on November 8, notes Space.com. Asteroids of this size have come as close before, but scientists have never been as technologically prepared to zoom in as they are now.

This type of asteroid is "thought to be representative of the primordial materials from which our solar system was formed," says a NASA scientist. "This flyby will be an excellent opportunity to test how we study, document, and quantify which asteroids would be most appropriate for a future human mission." And don't worry: It "poses no threat of an Earth collision over, at the very least, the next 100 years." Click to read about another nearby asteroid. (More asteroid stories.)