![](https://api.time.com/wp-content/uploads/2017/04/pia21594_hires.jpg?quality=85&w=2400)
A huge asteroid will fly past Earth at the closest distance it has come in the past 400 years.
The approach, a distance of 1.1 million miles or about 4.6 times the distance from Earth to the moon, will also be the closest the 2,000-foot-long asteroid comes for another 500 years, according to NASA.
“Astronomers plan to observe [the asteroid] with telescopes around the world to learn as much about it as possible,” NASA said in a statement.
The asteroid, known as 2014 JO25, is expected to be visible in the night sky after April 19 for one or two nights with the aid of a small telescope.
The agency also said there is no chance the asteroid will collide with Earth.
More Must-Reads from TIME
- Breaking Down the 2024 Election Calendar
- How Nayib Bukele’s ‘Iron Fist’ Has Transformed El Salvador
- What if Ultra-Processed Foods Aren’t as Bad as You Think?
- How Ukraine Beat Russia in the Battle of the Black Sea
- Long COVID Looks Different in Kids
- How Project 2025 Would Jeopardize Americans’ Health
- What a $129 Frying Pan Says About America’s Eating Habits
- The 32 Most Anticipated Books of Fall 2024
Contact us at letters@time.com