
When you buy through links on our articles, Future and its syndication partners may earn a commission.
TOP TELESCOPE PICK:
The Celestron NexStar 8SE is a great choice for exploring distant solar system objects and you can currently get it for $200 off during the Black Friday sales! Check out our Black Friday deals page for more!
Tune in on Sunday (Nov. 30) to see live telescopic views as the near-Earth asteroid (433) Eros appears to buzz the Andromeda Galaxy, courtesy of a livestream hosted by the Virtual Telescope Institute in partnership with the Asteroid Foundation.
Sunday's livestream is due to start at 3 p.m. EST (2000 GMT) and will feature expert commentary from Virtual Telescope Project founder Gianluca Masi alongside live views of Andromeda and Eros taken from the organization's wide-field robotic telescopes in Manciano, Italy — weather permitting, of course.
"Having such an important near-Earth asteroid just a couple of degrees away from the legendary Andromeda Galaxy (Messier 31) is a precious opportunity to share both the importance of these kind of minor planets and the beauty of our cosmic neighbor, the Messier 31 island-universe," Masi told Space.com in an email.
In 1898, Eros became the first near-Earth asteroid ever discovered and was later visited by NASA's NEAR (Near Earth Asteroid Rendezvous) Shoemaker spacecraft. Upon reaching the object, this probe first orbited around the 20-mile-wide (33-kilometer-wide) body then, on Feb. 12, 2001, performed the first asteroid landing in history.
Eros will be just 37 million miles (60 million kilometers) from Earth when it passes within two degrees of Andromeda's core on the night of Nov. 30, while the vast spiral galaxy itself will be positioned a staggering 2.5 million light-years from our solar system.
"Thanks to its large size, Eros will shine at around magnitude 10 for several weeks, making it easily observable even with a modest 60 mm telescope," Masi wrote in a separate email to Space.com.
Magnitude is the value used by astronomers to measure the brightness of an object in the night sky: The lower the value, the brighter the object.
Want to catch a glimpse of the wandering asteroid for yourself? Both Eros and Andromeda can be found high above the eastern horizon in the hours following sunset on Nov. 30. First locate the constellations Cassiopeia and Andromeda using a handy starfinding astronomy app. Next locate the uppermost three stars and use them to point the way to Andromeda, as shown in the finder chart above.
Be sure to check out our roundup of the best binoculars and telescopes for exploring the night sky in 2025.
LATEST POSTS
- 1
CDC vaccine panel votes to remove universal hepatitis B birth dose recommendation - 2
Remote Work Survival manual: Helping Efficiency at Home - 3
Judge sets $60K bond for Florida congresswoman accused of stealing $5M in COVID-19 funds - 4
Instructions to Pick the Right Gold Speculation Procedure: Exploring the Market - 5
Instructions to Explore the Therapy Choices for Cellular breakdown in the lungs
Antivirus Programming for Exhaustive Security
Instructions to Warmly greet Certainty and Appeal
Paratroopers kill terrorist who threw rocks at Israeli citizens, soldiers near Ofra in West Bank
Shipping: The Corridors of Trade and the Coming of Another Period
At 72, Kathie Lee Gifford says aging isn’t what she expected. 'The golden years? It’s a lie.’
How to watch Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve with Ryan Seacrest: Start time, TV channel, performers and more
Presenting Nintendo's New Pastel Satisfaction Con Tones for Switch Gamers: 3 Upscale Choices
This Canadian crater looks like marbled meat | Space photo of the day for Jan. 6, 2026
German journalists' union condemns attack on reporters in village













