1.5-Mile-Long Asteroid Passes Nearby, Sort Of
From Times Staff and Wire Reports
The small asteroid Toutatis on Wednesday made its closest approach to Earth since 1353. The oblong rock, measuring about 3 miles by 1.5 miles, came within 999,149 miles of Earth, about four times the distance between Earth and the moon.
The asteroid, which tumbles around its major axis once every 5.4 days, orbits the sun every four years.
Toutatis was discovered in 1989 and named for a Celtic god of war.
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