The Minor Planet Mailing List is abuzz with news that a small asteroid has just been discovered that's headed our way. Closest approach will be only 0.000081 AU (~12,000 km) away! That's a new record (not counting Tunguska <grin>). What follows is one of the MPML posts. patrick ***** 2007 VN84 is significant in that it not only comes closer, it is much bigger, around 20 m in diameter, compared to 2004 FU162 only about 1/3 that size. Based on our recent population estimates, we expect an object the size of 2004 FU162 to pass within a couple Earth radii about once a year, and to actually impact (actually, blow up in the upper atmosphere) about once in five years, so the only thing unusual about 2004 FU162 is that we saw it as it passed by. 2007 VN84, on the other hand, is so large that we expect omething that big to come as close as 2 radii only about once in 20 years, so it is a remarkable event in itself, in addition to the fact that it was discovered and can be watched flying by. Congratulations to Richard Kowalski and the Catalina Sky Survey. ***** http://www.cfa.harvard.edu/mpec/K07/K07V69.html