Near-Earth object atmosphere, passing Earth's surface only away (about one Earth radius or one-sixtieth of the distance to the Moon). Because it was very small (6 meters/20 feet), FU was detected only hours before its closest approach. If it had collided with Earth, it probably would have disintegrated harmlessly in the atmosphere. On February 4, 2011, an asteroid designated , estimated at in diameter, passed within of the Earth, setting a new record for closest approach without impact, which still stands . On November 8, 2011, asteroid , relatively large at about in diameter, passed within (0.85 lunar distances) of Earth. On
Near-Earth Object Camera by the Spitzer Space Telescope. The spacecraft would operate in a halo orbit around the Sun–Earth , and employ a Sun shield. This orbit would allow fast data downlink speeds to Earth, allowing full-frame images to be downloaded from the telescope. Near-Earth Object Camera The Near-Earth Object Camera (NEOCam) is a proposed space-based infrared telescope designed to survey the Solar System for potentially hazardous asteroids. NEOCam would survey from the Sun–Earth Lagrange point, allowing it to look close to the Sun and see objects inside Earth's orbit. NEOCam would be a successor to the WISE mission; the principal investigator is