Here's how close a two-mile long asteroid will come to earth on Wednesday - and if you should be worried

This week, a giant asteroid will hurtle towards our planet, and will be visible from Earth as it comes chillingly close to us.

Officially named 1998 OR2, the space rock is described as "half the size of Everest", and will fly by at almost 19,500 miles per hour on Wednesday (29 April).

Here's everything you need to know about it:

How big is 1998 OR2?

Asteroid 1998 OR2 is thought to be sized between 1.8 and 4.1 kilometres in diameter. That's roughly 0.5 to 2.5 miles.

The higher end of that estimate suggests the space rock could be around half the size of Mount Everest, and taller than Japan's Mount Fuji.

How close will it come?

Asteroid 1998 OR2 will buzz the planet just 3.9 million miles from its surface.

This may sound far away, but in space terms, it's relatively near, close enough to be considered a "Near Earth Object" (NEO) by NASA.

The space agency considers anything passing within 120 million miles of Earth a NEO.

How can I see the asteroid?

Unfortunately, the won't be visible with the naked eye.

But if you have a telescope handy at home, you should be able to see 1998 OR2 as it skims passed earth.