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Heads Up, Santa: Asteroid Flying Past Earth On Christmas Eve

WASHINGTON (CBS) -- As Santa makes his trip around the world on Christmas Eve, there's something else astronomers will be watching in the sky.

A 3,600-foot asteroid is streaking past Earth on Thursday, but there's no reason for Santa or anyone on the planet to be alarmed. The closest Asteroid 2003 SD220 will come is 6.8 million miles away, according to NASA.

RELATED: NORAD Tracking Santa's Journey Toward New England 

"There is no cause for concern over the upcoming flyby of asteroid 2003 SD220 this Christmas Eve," said Paul Chodas, a NASA official, in a statement. "The closest this object will come to Santa and his eight tiny reindeer is about 28 times the distance between Earth and the moon."

In 2018, the same asteroid will make a much closer pass to Earth, but still at a safe distance of 1.8 million miles away. NASA says it's the closet any asteroid will get to us until 2070.

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