This is a list of examples where an asteroid or meteoroid travels close to the Earth. Some are regarded as potentially hazardous objects if they are estimated to be large enough to cause regional devastation.
Near-Earth object detection technology began to improve around 1998, so objects being detected as of 2004 could have been missed only a decade earlier due to a lack of dedicated near-Earth astronomical surveys. As sky surveys improve, smaller and smaller asteroids are regularly being discovered. The small near-Earth asteroids 2008 TC3, 2014 AA, 2018 LA, 2019 MO, 2022 EB5, 2022 WJ1, 2023 CX1, 2024 BX1, and 2024 RW1 are the only nine asteroids discovered before impacting into Earth (see asteroid impact prediction). Scientists estimate that several dozen asteroids in the 6–12 m (20–39 ft) size range fly by Earth at a distance closer than the moon every year, but only a fraction of these are actually detected.[1][2] See also lists dedicated to specific years such as List of asteroid close approaches to Earth in 2023.
- ^ "Responding to Potential Asteroid Redirect Mission Targets". Jet Propulsion Laboratory. Archived from the original on 2014-02-26. Retrieved 2014-02-21.
- ^ Chang, Kenneth (June 14, 2018). "Asteroids and Adversaries: Challenging What NASA Knows About Space Rocks - Relevant Comments". The New York Times. Archived from the original on June 22, 2018. Retrieved July 21, 2018.