This Sunday, an asteroid larger than Manhattan – large enough it could end civilization, or at least wreck a country – is casually flying by Earth. Don’t panic. This rocky beast named (887) Alinda has zero chance of hitting the blue marble anytime soon.

NASA has alerted the public about two asteroids, 2024 YA10 and 2024 BM1, set to have close encounters with Earth this Wednesday. However, the space agency has reassured that these asteroids pose no threat to the planet's safety.

In the coming days, we can observe one of the most spectacular astronomical events. Asteroid 887 Alinda, with a diameter of about 2.6 miles, will be the closest asteroid to Earth in 100 years. In many places around the world,