Blue Whale-sized asteroid 2026 JH2 passes extremely close to Earth

A massive asteroid that has just been detected is reportedly travelling toward Earth at about 32,000 kilometres per hour. The space rock is scheduled to pass extremely close to our planet on Monday 18 May 2026 or Tuesday 19 May 2026, with its position observed to be closer than the orbits of several artificial satellites. Despite the close distance, scientists confirm the asteroid has zero per cent chance of hitting Earth. The rare phenomenon represents a golden opportunity for astronomy enthusiasts as it can be watched via livestream. According to data from the Small-Body Database Lookup of NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), the asteroid has a diameter of 35 metres. That size is comparable to the maximum length of the largest land animal, the blue whale. In terms of dimensions, 2026 JH2 is roughly the same size as the Chelyabinsk meteor that exploded dramatically in the skies over Russia in 2013, recorded as the largest space rock to enter Earth’s atmosphere in nearly 120 years. At that altitude, the giant rock is indeed higher than most communications satellites. However, its position is much closer to Earth’s surface than some scientific space shuttles, such as NASA’s Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite (TESS). Nevertheless, NASA confirms there is no risk of collision between the asteroid and the TESS satellite. The asteroid is known to orbit the Sun every 3.7 years in an elliptical orbit that extends out to approach the region of Jupiter.