Near-Earth Asteroid 2025 AC very close encounter: an image – 2 Jan. 2025.
On 2 Jan. 2025, the just discovered near-Earth Asteroid 2025 AC is making a very close, but safe encounter with the Earth, bringing it as close as 140.000 km from the Earth, 36% of the average lunar distance. It is the first asteroid discovered in 2025 coming closer than the Moon.
Near-Earth Asteroid 2025 AC very close encounter: 2 Jan. 2024.
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The image above comes from a single 120-second exposure, remotely taken with the “Elena” (PlaneWave 17″ + Paramount MEII + SBIG STL-6303E) robotic unit available as part of the Virtual Telescope Project. The telescope tracked the fast (about 300”/minute) apparent motion of the asteroid, so the object looks like a sharp dot of light in the center, while stars show long, bright streaks on the background. When we captured it, 2025 AC was 20 degrees above the NE horizon and we observed it through thin clouds.
The 17” robotic unit while imaging asteroid 2025 AC. On the right, Venus (higher) and the Moon.
At the imaging time, asteroid 2025 AC was at about 150.000 km from us, almost at its minimum distance, but still approaching.
This 4.1-9.3 meter large asteroid will reach its minimum distance (about 140.000 km, 36% of the average lunar distance) from us on 2 Jan. 2025, at 22:36 UTC (source: Nasa/JPL). Of course, there were no risks at all for our planet.
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