An asteroid that "may be dangerous" twice the size of the Great Pyramid of Giza reaches its closest point to Earth today

The space rock, dubbed 2023 FM, is estimated to be 260 meters (853 feet) in diameter, twice the size of the Great Pyramid of Giza or the size of 90 villas.

The asteroid is supposed to travel at a speed of about 56,000 km / h (35,000 mph), and it will pass approximately 3 million km from the planet (1.8 million miles), at 14:09 GMT today.

This distance does not mean that there is a reason to panic about any impact that the asteroid could have on our world, since even with its closest point to Earth it will be far from our moon located at a distance of 384,500 km (238,900 miles).

NASA has classified 2023 FM as a "potentially hazardous" asteroid (PHA) because it is large enough to cause significant damage in the event of a collision.

All asteroids that fall within 7.48 million km (4.65 million miles) of Earth and have a diameter of 159 meters (520 feet) are classified as "potentially hazardous".

2023 FM is also a near-Earth asteroid (NEO), and it is one of those rocky bodies that pass near the Earth's path around the sun up to an estimated distance of 45 million km, as 2023 FM is located 195 million km (121 million miles) from the sun.

In addition, it belongs to the category of "Apollo asteroids", which means that it crosses the Earth's orbit as it revolves around the sun, just as the asteroid called "Apollo" did in 1862, which was the first to be seen doing so.

While it is not known exactly where it came from, most near-Earth asteroids originate from the "main asteroid belt" located between Jupiter and Mars.

NASA's Planetary Defense Coordination Office says that the vast majority of near-Earth asteroids came from the inner part of the "main asteroid belt", where their orbits have changed over tens of millions of years due to the gravitational influence of Jupiter and Mars, some of them due to mutual collisions. Source: Daily Mail

Who is the first female Saudi astronaut?

The Saudi Space Authority announced that next May will witness the launch of a flight carrying the first Saudi female astronaut to the International Space Station.

According to the information provided by the authority, Saudi astronaut Rayana Bernawi and her colleague Ali Al-Qarni will join the crew of the "AX-2" space mission, which will head towards the space station next May.

"Axion-Space's announcement, when our heroes will launch into space next May, is the beginning of a new era of Saudi space exploration," the Saudi Space Authority said in a tweet on Twitter.

Rayana Barnawi is a Saudi astronaut, born in 1990. On February 12, 2023, she was chosen as part of the AX-2 space mission crew by the Saudi Space Authority, to become the first Saudi woman to go to space.

According to the available information, Bernawi is a laboratory research specialist, who holds a Bachelor's degree in Reproductive Science, Genetic Engineering and Tissue Development from the University of Otago, New Zealand, and has experience in the field of cancer stem cells. Source: Saudi agencies

Sultan Al Neyadi photographing some Arab countries from space

The Emirati astronaut, Sultan Al Neyadi, published a distinctive video clip showing what some Arab countries look like from space.

Al-Neyadi filmed the clip, which he posted on his Twitter page, from the windows of the International Space Station, on which he is currently on board, and attached the clip by saying, "From Mesopotamia to the beloved Muscat, I dedicate to you this morning tour over the Arabian Peninsula from space."

It should be noted that the Emirati astronaut, Sultan Al Neyadi, had gone to the International Space Station as part of the Crew-6 mission, to embark on the longest scientific mission for the Arabs in space, which will last for six continuous months at the station.

It is scheduled that the Emirati astronaut will conduct many scientific experiments on board the station, dedicated to topics such as back pain, plant biology, cardiovascular health, materials science, radiation, sleep, and fluids, according to an overview provided by the Mohammed bin Rashid Space Center that manages Emirati astronaut program. Source: agencies