The largest hit in recent times was the object that exploded over Tunguska, Siberia, in June 1908 with an energy impact of five to 15 megatons. Then there was that spectacular and destructive airburst in February 2013 over the Russian city of Chelyabinsk. The Chelyabinsk explosion generated a shock wave that shattered windows on the ground, and the resulting flying glass shards injured more than 1,000 people.
* * *
Thwarting an incoming object that has Earth in its crosshairs will mean deflecting or disrupting the hazardous object. That's a task of planetary defense, an "applied planetary science" to address the near-Earth object (NEO) impact hazard.
In case you are keeping track:
Harvard professor believes asteroid was actually old alien tech | TribLIVE.com
The New York Post reports that the rock in question was deemed ‘Oumuamua (meaning “scout” in Hawaiian), and caused quite a stir within scientific groups.
Not only was ‘Oumuamua the first interstellar object ever found within Earth’s solar system, but its trajectory indicated its movement was not contingent upon the sun’s gravitational pull. In fact, ‘Oumuamua appeared to be driven by a force other than our central star’s, even accelerating away from the sun at one point.
Remote sensing data sheds light on when and how asteroid Ryugu lost its water | Brown University
Rocks on Ryugu, a "rubble pile" near-Earth asteroid recently visited by Japan's Hayabusa2 spacecraft, appear to have lost much of their water before they came together to form the asteroid, new research suggests.
Japan's Hayabusa2 spacecraft snapped pictures of the asteroid Ryugu while flying alongside it two years ago. The spacecraft later returned rock samples from the asteroid to Earth. Credit: JAXA
PROVIDENCE, R.I. [Brown University] — Last month, Japan's Hayabusa2 mission brought home a cache of rocks collected from a near-Earth asteroid called Ryugu. While analysis of those returned samples is just getting underway, researchers are using data from the spacecraft's other instruments to reveal new details about the asteroid's past.
Should I worry about an asteroid hitting Earth? - CGTN
Every so often there are reports that an asteroid is passing close to Earth, with the most recent story claiming one the size of the Eiffel Tower will be zooming past our planet. Dinosaurs also famously became extinct after an asteroid collided with our planet 66 million years ago. But what is the likelihood of it happening again?
To answer this question, CGTN Europe spoke to Doug Millard, the space curator at the Science Museum in London.
* * *
"It may be fairly small, anything from a meter upwards, or it may be very big," he says, adding that the biggest asteroid is "about the size of the UK." These minor planets, which can also be referred to as planetoids, are normally found in the inner solar system.
While you're here, how about this:
A huge asteroid and three small NEOs will shoot past Earth in early Jan, NASA warns, Science News
Year 2020's final asteroid, 2020 YB4, measuring just 36 metres in diameter or roughly half the wingspan of a 747,
passed by the Earth shortly after 6 am UTC at a distance of 6.1 million kilometres.
* * *
The 15-metre asteroid 2019 YB4 will fly by at a safe distance of 6.4 million kilometres. It will be followed up by two
more chunks of cosmic debris in the form of the 15-meter 2020 YA1 and the 21-meter 2020 YP4, which will pass by at
1.5 and 2.1 million kilometers respectively, the next day.
Hayabusa-2 Reveals New Details about Asteroid Ryugu | Planetary Science, Space Exploration |
Hayabusa-2 image of the asteroid Ryugu as seen from a distance of 3.7 miles. A particularly large crater is visible near the center of the image. Image credit: JAXA / University of Tokyo / Kochi University / Rikkyo University / Nagoya University / Chiba Institute of Technology / Meiji University / University of Aizu / AIST.
" Ryugu is a rubble pile, a loose conglomeration of rock held together by gravity," said co-author Dr. Ralph Milliken, a planetary scientist at Brown University, and colleagues.
Hubble captures photo of asteroid worth 70,000 times the global economy - DIY Photography
16 Psyche was discovered a long time ago: Italian astronomer Annibale de Gasparis first spotted it on 17 March 1852. It hasn't been explored from up close so far, but NASA plans to send a spacecraft to explore it in 2022. According to NASA, its size is 173 miles (279km) by 144 miles (232,) by 117 (189) miles. It's one of the most massive objects in the main asteroid belt orbiting between Mars and Jupiter.
Other than the "cost" of this huge mass of iron and nickel, they indicate that the 16 Psyche could be the leftover core of a planet. "Earth has a metal core, a mantle and crust," Dr. Becker explained. "It's possible that as a Psyche protoplanet was forming, it was struck by another object in our solar system and lost its mantle and crust."
Asteroid Flying Past Earth On Christmas Is Bigger Than Statue Of Liberty
How'd you like a replica of the Statue of Liberty for Xmas? Or better still, how'd you like an asteroid twice the size of Lady Liberty for Xmas? Well then, you're just shy 2 million miles from getting your wish.
* * *
Here's what's crazy. The asteroid is considered a near-earth object, yet when it passes it will be 8 times further away from earth than the moon.
BTW ... SD224 is not alone. There are nearly 25,000 near-earth objects in the skies. And, it wouldn't be the first time something hit, check out this massive crater in Arizona.
Happening on Twitter
Defending Earth against dangerous asteroids: Q&A with NASA's Lindley Johnson https://t.co/ZImlTe2sWu https://t.co/L5V3bYNh5b SPACEdotcom (from NYC) Tue Jan 05 18:49:33 +0000 2021
No comments:
Post a Comment