Overview: What NASA’s JPL Has Reported
NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), which maintains the primary catalog of near-Earth objects (NEOs), has reported a close series of flybys by several small asteroids. According to JPL’s NEO database, three objects are currently on trajectories that will bring them past Earth in quick succession. While their sizes are modest by planetary standards, the events illustrate how even relatively tiny space rocks can pass by our planet with space to spare.
The Sizes and Names of the Upcoming Passes
The objects, measured by their provisional designations, are: 2025-TN2 — the largest of the group; 2025-SJ29; 2025-TF1; and 2020-QU5. Each is significantly smaller than the “potentially hazardous” threshold but still worth tracking by scientists. Estimated diameters place them in the range of tens of feet to the low tens of meters, with 2025-TN2 being the largest among them in the current sequence, followed by 2025-SJ29, 2025-TF1, and 2020-QU5, which vary in size from roughly 55 to 81 feet across.
How NASA Sees These Events
JPL’s Center for Near-Earth Object Studies (CNEOS) maintains orbital models and risk assessments for NEOs. Even when the rocks are relatively small, their paths are carefully calculated to determine whether any could intersect Earth’s atmosphere or orbit at notable inclinations. In this batch, all four objects are classified as near-Earth rather than potentially dangerous, meaning they do not come within the distance that would classify them as a terrestrial threat. They simply pass by in space, offering scientists a chance to refine tracking techniques and improve models for even larger objects in the future.
Past Close Encounters and What They Teach Us
In recent weeks, a tiny asteroid — roughly the size of a giraffe — sped past Earth, detected after its flyby by the Catalina Sky Survey under NASA’s funding umbrella. This event, like today’s advisories, underscores a key point: small NEOs can approach Earth more closely than many satellites while remaining harmless. ESA and NASA routinely track thousands of such objects, building a data-rich picture of space traffic around our planet.
Why These Listings Matter
Even when near-Earth objects pose no immediate danger, their orbits provide valuable data about the population of small bodies in our cosmic neighborhood. Studying their composition, speed, and trajectories helps astronomers test detection thresholds, calibrate asteroid surveys, and fine-tune collision-avoidance simulations for future, larger threats. The ongoing monitoring by NASA and ESA is a cornerstone of planetary defense and space science.
What to Expect Next
Watchers and scientists expect a steady stream of small NEO flybys as telescopes scan the sky nightly. No known asteroid currently poses a threat for at least the next century, according to current assessments, but the continuous discovery and tracking of near-Earth asteroids remain essential. The collaboration between NASA’s JPL, ESA’s Space Situational Awareness programs, and ground-based observatories ensures we stay informed and prepared should any larger object alter its course in the future.
Safety and Public Information
Public interest in cosmic neighbors is high, but it’s important to distinguish between a routine flyby and a threat. The adjective “potentially hazardous” describes objects larger than about 460 feet that come within 7.48 million kilometers of Earth. The four asteroids in today’s update clearly fall below that threshold, reaffirming that close approaches are common, well-covered by scientists, and not indicative of imminent danger.
