An asteroid smashing into Earth's surface presents one of the most serious threats to the planet. There is evidence the planet has repeatedly been struck by asteroids in the past - with the largest observed crater formed in South Africa, estimated to have hit around two billion years ago.
But, writing in ‘What Does Rain Smell Like?’, meteorologists Simon King and Clare Nasir explain the horrific impacts of an asteroid smashing into the planet now.
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Will This Approaching Asteroid Hit Earth Or Explode In The Atmosphere?
NASA has spotted an asteroid that's expected to approach the planet tomorrow. Given the size and speed of the incoming asteroid, there's a chance it might cause a huge explosion in the atmosphere if it hits Earth.
The approaching asteroid has been identified by NASA's Center for Near-Earth Object Studies (CNEOS) as 2019 YX2 . According to CNEOS, this asteroid is currently flying towards Earth at a speed of almost 12,400 miles per hour. The agency estimated that the asteroid has a diameter of around 105 feet.
NASA mission to track near Earth objects takes shape - SpaceNews.com
SANTA FE, N.M. — A revamped NASA mission to search for near Earth objects from space has secured funding to start development as the agency works out details about how it will be managed.
The fiscal year 2020 "minibus" spending bill signed into law by President Trump Dec. 20 that provides $22.63 billion for NASA includes $35.6 million to start development of the Near Earth Object (NEO) Surveillance Mission. That mission would fly a small space telescope with an infrared camera to discover and track NEOs, helping identify any that pose an impact risk to the Earth.
A 426-Foot-Wide Asteroid Will Zoom Past Earth Tomorrow At Nearly 54,000 MPH
A large, pyramid-sized asteroid is making its way towards Earth and will swing by for a close approach tomorrow, NASA has announced.
Interestingly enough, tomorrow’s flyby will be the closest encounter with Earth in the last 11 years for 2019 XF. According to a report released earlier today by NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL), the object often passes by Earth as it orbits the sun once every 573 days, or a little over a year-and-a-half. The large asteroid also swings by Venus and Mercury as it treks the inner solar system, making frequent flybys of the three planets.
Other things to check out:
Fossil Ice Found In A Meteorite Is The First Direct Evidence Of Ice In Asteroids - Astrobiology
A section of Acfer 094 showing the irregularity of the matrix, hinting at the pockets of fossilised ice © Epifanio et al 2019
High-resolution scans of a 4.6-billion-year-old meteorite have revealed 'fossilised' ice. It is the first direct evidence of early asteroids incorporating frozen water into their matrix when they formed.
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This has been hinted at by observed changes in the minerals that make up the asteroids caused by this water - changes known as aqueous alterations. But how this water was distributed throughout the asteroids and when this ice melted was not fully understood.
How 2019's space missions explored distant worlds | Science News
From asteroids to exoplanets, spacecraft are leaving no space rock unturned. While agencies in China, India and Israel made headlines with missions to the moon , here are some other places that space probes scouted in 2019.
NASA's Transiting Exoplanet Survey Satellite, or TESS, racked up eight exoplanet finds in its first few months of observation ( SN: 2/2/19, p. 12 ). That initial cache included some weirdos, such as a planet that is about as dense as pure water and a "lava world" known as LHS 3844b that sizzles at about 540° Celsius.
Earth was stressed before dinosaur extinction: Fossilized seashells show signs of global warming,
New evidence gleaned from Antarctic seashells confirms that Earth was already unstable before the asteroid impact that wiped out the dinosaurs.
The study, led by researchers at Northwestern University, is the first to measure the calcium isotope composition of fossilized clam and snail shells, which date back to the Cretaceous-Paleogene mass extinction event. The researchers found that -- in the run-up to the extinction event -- the shells' chemistry shifted in response to a surge of carbon in the oceans.
Why is an Asteroid the Size of the Empire State Building Heading Towards Earth so Feared?
In 2010, a team from Universidad de Valladolid, co-led by María Eugenia Sansaturio, warned about the threat that asteroid 101955 Bennu poses to our planet, and since then the asteroid has remained closely monitored by scientists.
Enthusiasts on the YouTube channel Destiny recently explained why the notorious asteroid 1999 RQ36 – also known as 101955 Bennu in honour of the ancient Egyptian mythological bird associated with Sun, creation and rebirth – is being so closely monitored and widely feared.
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