A large 'meteorite' meteorite is approaching Earth

The US space agency (NASA) is tracking a " potentially dangerous " asteroid about the size of a mountain approaching Earth at more than 67,000 km / h.

This meteorite is expected to fly over the Earth at 16h45 on 21/5, Eastern American Daylight Time - EDT (3h45 on 22/5 Vietnamese time), and luckily at a safe distance, according to the Korea Times.

"Asteroids that are potentially dangerous are being determined based on parameters that measure the asteroid's ability to approach Earth in a threatening manner," NASA said.

"Specifically, all asteroids that have a minimum orbital intersection distance of 0.05 (astronomical units) and an absolute magnitude of 22.0 or less are considered asteroids that can dangerous . "

NASA's simulation image of asteroid about the size of a mountain. (Photo: NASA).

The asteroid - defined by NASA's Near-Earth Object Research Center (CNEOS) as 1997 BQ - is nearly twice the size of the Burj Khalifa in Dubai, the tallest man-made structure in the world.

It was first observed on January 16, 1997. After analyzing its orbit, NASA concluded that the asteroid follows a wide orbit around the Sun, on the plane between Mars and Jupiter.

When moving around the Sun, the asteroid occasionally intersects with the Earth's orbit. Therefore, it was considered a member of the Apollo meteorite group.

Its enormous size and orbit close to Earth are the main reasons why 1997 BQ is classified as a celestial body that can be dangerous.