NEW YORK. A small asteroid, designated 2024 RW1, burned up harmlessly in Earth’s atmosphere over the Philippines on Wednesday, just hours after its discovery, according to NASA. The asteroid, which measured about 3 feet (1 meter) across, was detected by astronomers in Arizona earlier that day.
The asteroid was identified by the Catalina Sky Survey, a NASA-funded project operated by the University of Arizona. This event marks only the ninth time an asteroid has been spotted before entering Earth’s atmosphere.
NASA reassured the public that space rocks of this size frequently approach Earth—about once every two weeks—without posing any significant threat. Despite its fiery demise, 2024 RW1 caused no harm as it disintegrated over the Philippine coast.
Such discoveries highlight the importance of ongoing asteroid detection efforts, allowing scientists to track near-Earth objects, even those that do not pose a risk.
Gary P Hernal started college at UP Diliman and received his BA in Economics from San Sebastian College, Manila, and Masters in Information Systems Management from Keller Graduate School of Management of DeVry University in Oak Brook, IL. He has 25 years of copy editing and management experience at Thomson West, a subsidiary of Thomson Reuters.
