City Block-Size Asteroid 2012 LZ1 Zips by Earth as Scientists Watch

Mike Wall is a senior writer for Space.com.

"The 1,650-foot-wide (500-meter) near-Earth asteroid 2012 LZ1 came within 3.3 million miles (5.3 million kilometers) of our planet during its closest approach at 8 p.m. EDT Thursday (0000 GMT Friday)."

"The asteroid didn't exactly streak off into deep space after sidling up next to us. It's moving somewhat parallel to our planet at the moment, researchers said, meaning that large telescopes should still be able to track it for the next week or so."

"While 2012 LZ1's size and proximity to Earth qualify it as a potentially hazardous asteroid, it doesn't appear to pose much of a threat to our planet anytime soon."

Read more about the near-Earth asteroid 2012 LZ1 on Space.com.