CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — A large asteroid accompanied by its own small moon approached Earth yesterday, the latest in a string of celestial visitors drawing attention to the dangers of objects in space.

Asteroid 1998 QE2 is about 1.7 miles in diameter — far bigger than the asteroid that blasted through the skies over Chelyabinsk, Russia, on Feb. 15, leaving more than 1,500 people injured.

At its closest approach, at 4:59 p.m. EDT yesterday, the asteroid was about 3.6 million miles from Earth, roughly 15 times farther away than Earth’s moon.

“For an asteroid of this size, it’s a close shave,” said Paul Chodas, a scientist with NASA’s Near Earth Object program office.