Close approach

Giraffe-sized asteroid 2026 VR5

0.7 LD · ~5 m

0.7 LD
from Earth — inside the Moon's orbit
283,829 km
distance from Earth’s center
3–9 m
estimated diameter
Giraffe
roughly the size of
2026 VR5 · ~5 mGiraffe · 5 m
1 m

Drawn to scale.

Silhouette: Jody Taylor, PhyloPic (CC0)

2026 VR5 passes inside the Moon's orbit, about 283,829 km from Earth's centre (0.7× the distance to the Moon). It is 3–9 m across (estimated). If a rock this size hit Earth, it would burn up as a bright fireball high in the atmosphere; at most, small meteorites reach the ground. Astronomers spot one this size passing inside the Moon's orbit about 100 times a year, and many more pass unseen. This is a routine close approach with no known impact risk.

For the background, read Impact risk in Asteroids.

Get a heads-up on the next close approach

Asteroid Alerts sends a push when something worth seeing happens — a big fireball, a close asteroid pass, a meteor shower peak or an aurora storm. Free.

One email a week

What’s passing, what’s visible, what hit.

More like this

Browse all events →