Giant Asteroid Cruise Ship To Buzz Earth

Asteroid 1998 QE2 to Sail Past Earth 9 Times Larger than Cruise Ship
“On May 31, 2013, asteroid 1998 QE2 will sail serenely past Earth, getting no closer than about 3.6 million miles (5.8 million kilometers), or about 15 times the distance between Earth and the moon. And while QE2 is not of much interest to those astronomers and scientists on the lookout for hazardous asteroids, it is of interest to those who dabble in radar astronomy and have a 230-foot (70-meter) — or larger — radar telescope at their disposal.”
Keith’s note: NASA PAO just loves to make puns with their press release headlines. The asteroid was not actually named after the QE2. Given that the popular impression of cruise ships these days is that they are disease-ridden floating toilets, I suppose someone will inevitably connect recent news about Earth’s water coming from asteroids (meteorites) and a giant cruise ship in space and …