You won't be able to see the asteroid that will streak by Earth at a close but safe distance today.
Asteroid 2012 DA14 will be on the other side of the globe, making its closest pass more than 17,000 miles above Earth's surface over Indonesia at 12:25 p.m. MST.
The asteroid, estimated to be about 150 feet in diameter, will be close but not too close for comfort, according to NASA officials who plot the orbits of near-Earth objects.
"No Earth impact is possible," said Don Yeomans, manager of the Near-Earth Object Office at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory.
NASA, which funds an array of programs to find such objects and plot their orbits, is greatly interested in observing this one and will share its observations today in a half-hour webcast, beginning at noon Tucson time.
The broadcast will provide commentary, "real-time animation" and live views of the asteroid, if the weather is favorable for astronomers in Australia.
Even through telescopes, live views will simply show a point of light passing across the sky.
Watch the show at www.nasa.gov/ntv
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