The asteroid that is scheduled to drift close to Earth this weekend is not the kind of thing that usually catches public attention, even in astronomical circles where flybys are fairly routine.
However, there are moments when the numbers line up in a way that makes people look twice. A rocky object several times taller than the Eiffel Tower, moving through the inner solar system on a path that passes our planet at what space agencies describe as a safe distance, tends to do this. It won’t be visible to the naked eye, and nothing about its path indicates anything unusual in the serious sense, but the combination of its size, timing and relative brightness has made it a point of discussion among observers who follow the sky closely.
The pass will occur on Saturday, June 27, 2026, when it glides through space about 1.6 million miles from Earth.
particle Asteroid 1997 NC1 It is scheduled to approach soon in late June
The object in question is 1997 NC1 (152637), a near-Earth asteroid estimated to be between 710 and 1,600 meters across. This puts it in the category of objects that planetary scientists tend to observe with unflinching interest rather than panic. It is large enough to reshape regional landscapes if it were ever on a collision course, yet its current orbit is poorly understood.
According to data collected by the European Space Agency, the closest approach occurs at approximately 11:14 UTC on June 27, when the asteroid reaches its closest approach at a distance of about 2.6 million kilometers. The orbit classification used by astronomers places it in the Aten group, meaning that it spends much of its time within Earth’s orbit while still crossing our path at intervals.“An object of this size approaching Earth only happens every few years, although this time the bright, nearby Moon may make it less noticeable on closest approach,” said Juan Luis Cano of ESA’s Planetary Defense Office.
How astronomers have tracked it since 1997
The asteroid was first captured in 1997 by the NEAT survey, part of a broader effort at the time to catalog objects moving through Earth’s vicinity. At the time, detection systems were much less automated than they are today, and monitoring and follow-up operations were necessary to confirm its orbit.Over the years, repeated tracking has improved his trajectory to the point where his future passes can be predicted with high confidence. The subject itself did not change course in any dramatic sense; What has changed is the precision with which astronomers can map its movement against the background of the solar system.Its previous recorded approach was in 1993, and the next similar pass is not expected until 2088, which is part of the reason this weekend’s flyby is being treated as a rare observing window rather than a routine event.
How to watch the asteroid flyby via live stream online
For most people, the simplest way to follow the asteroid would be through a live stream rather than a telescope in the park. The Virtual Telescope Project plans online observations on June 26 and 27, starting at 23:00 UTC each evening.The broadcast will be led by astrophysicist Gianluca Masi, who typically narrates these sessions as the telescope captures the slow drift of objects across star fields. The asteroid itself will not appear as a dramatic or glowing object. It appears as a moving point of light, and its position changes against the fixed stars over the course of minutes.
Asteroid sighting quick tips
Under the right conditions, the asteroid lies near the edge of vision for modest instruments.
Its peak brightness is estimated to be about 10 degrees, putting it beyond unaided view but within reach of small telescopes and, in dark skies, large binoculars.The European Space Agency notes that a telescope with an aperture of about 100 mm should be enough to pick it up as a faint dot moving slowly across the field of view. It’s not the brightness that gives it away but the movement. Over the course of a few minutes, it moves against the background stars in a way that becomes obvious once observed.The complication this time is the lunar phase. The bright moon, approaching full just two days after its closest approach, will wash out some of the fainter stars. This makes it difficult to optically isolate the asteroid, especially from suburban locations where light pollution is already a problem.
Timing, sky position, and moon interference
During the days of closest approach, the asteroid drifts across a wide section of the sky, starting at Lyra before moving south to Norma.
This path positions them differently depending on whether the observer is in the northern or southern hemisphere, although the general motion remains constant.Its speed across the sky is relatively fast for a telescopic target, about 40 arcseconds per minute. This number sounds technical, but in practical terms, it means that over the course of a short monitoring session, it will visibly change its location if tracked carefully.
