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Earth avoids collision with pair of asteroids

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X

XiaNaphryz

LATIN, MATRIPEDICABUS, DO YOU SPEAK IT
http://www.sciencerecorder.com/news/earth-avoids-collisions-with-pair-of-asteroids/

A pair of asteroids passed Earth Tuesday and early Wednesday, according to NASA, avoiding a potentially cataclysmic impact with our home planet.

The pair of asteroids — one just over three mile wide — provided both amateur and professional astronomers with an amazing sight. The asteroids, known as ‘2012 XE54’ and ‘4179 Toutatis’ respectively, are some of the largest asteroids to pass by without incident.

2012 XE5, which was discovered just days earlier, passed harmlessly by Earth early late Tuesday and as predicted it was eclipsed by Earth’s shadow, causing its light to appear extinguished for a short time, about 40 minutes. The asteroid passed by Earth, missing our planet by only 139,500 miles or slightly more than half the distance to the moon, according to NASA. The rocky body, estimated at between 50-165 feet across (15-50 meters), allowed astronomers to observe how the rare eclipse appears during flyby.

“Asteroids eclipsing during an Earth flyby are relatively rare, with the first known case of asteroid 2008 TC3 which was totally eclipsed just one hour before entering Earth’s atmosphere over Sudan in 2008, and asteroid 2012 KT42 experiencing both an eclipse and a transit during the same Earth flyby in 2012, ” said Pasquale Tricarico, Ph.D., at the Research Scientist Planetary Science Institute.

Meanwhile, ‘4179 Toutatis, the larger of the two, put on an amazing show for astronomers early Wednesday. The massive asteroid, which missed Earth by 18 lunar lengths, allowed scientists to observe the massive asteroid in detail. Speaking late Tuesday, NASA officials said the asteroid does not pose any danger to Earth, adding that astronomers would examine how Earth’s gravitational field influenced the orbit of the massive space rock.

“At closest approach on December 12th, asteroid 4179 Toutatis will be 7 million km away or 18 times farther than the Moon,” said Lance Benner of NASA’s Near Earth Object Program. “There is no danger of a collision with Earth,” but the asteroid will be close enough for radar imaging.”

Asteroid Toutatis is well known to astronomers, according to NASA. It passes by Earth’s orbit every four years and astronomers say its unique orbit means it is unlikely to impact Earth for at least 600 years. Measuring 4.5 km in length, it is one of the largest known potentially hazardous asteroids (PHAs), and its orbit is inclined less than half-a-degree from Earth’s.

“We already know that Toutatis will not hit Earth for hundreds of years,” says Benner. “These new observations will allow us to predict the asteroid’s trajectory even farther into the future.”

The massive asteroid likely provides astronomers with key data regarding its unusual orbit, which NASA describes as a “poorly thrown football.” Unlike planets and the vast majority of asteroids, which rotate around a single pole, Toutatis has two spin axes. It twirls around one with a period of 5.4 Earth-days and the other once every 7.3 days.

“The result is an asteroid that travels through space tumbling like a badly thrown football,” said one NASA official.
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J

Jezabel

Member
weird to know that they only noticed one a week beforehand. if there actually was one hurtling towards earth it would be pretty shocking only getting a week notice
 
A

Apath

Member
which was discovered just days earlier
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Yeah... let's get some more eyes towards the sky k thnx.

Jezabel said:
weird to know that they only noticed one a week beforehand. if there actually was one hurtling towards earth it would be pretty shocking only getting a week notice
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I doubt they would ever tell us. It may slowly leak, but I doubt they would ever make a formal announcement.
 
P

PseudoKirby

Banned
So did we not know about them until they came by?

is there a probability that something like that actually hitting earth would be a surprise?
 
J

jerry113

Banned
These close encounters keep on getting reported every several months or so.

Imagine waking up one day, checking news on the internet, and seeing a big headline about a newly discovered, sizable asteroid due to hit the planet shortly.

Why isn't the sky fully monitored? I'm going to guess small budget and short sighted governments.
 
Z

Zzoram

Member
There is a large asteroid due to hit Earth in 600 years? Um, is anyone working on at least the beginnings of a plan to avert that disaster?
 
R

Replicant

Member
So is this how those ancient prophecy got that 12/12/12 thing?

To be honest though, it's kind of freaky how no one saw this coming until it's kind of late.
 
A

Apath

Member
Zzoram said:
There is a large asteroid due to hit Earth in 600 years? Um, is anyone working on at least the beginnings of a plan to avert that disaster?
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NDGT says we can just send an object to slowly alter an asteroid's path with its (the object's) gravity. Sort of like a subtle gravity tether.

I guess these things aren't much of a problem as long as we're well aware of the threat and have ample opportunity to prepare.
 
G

ghostofsparta

Member
jerry113 said:
These close encounters keep on getting reported every several months or so.

Imagine waking up one day, checking news on the internet, and seeing a big headline about a newly discovered, sizable asteroid due to hit the planet shortly.

Why isn't the sky fully monitored? I'm going to guess small budget and short sighted governments.
Click to expand...

Have you not watched the movies? The government knows but wishes not to tell us about asteroids, especially earth ending ones.
 
C

coldvein

Banned
our life here is very fragile, friends.

enjoy that shit before an asteroid lands on our heads and destroys our system of agriculture.
 
A

Agnostic

but believes in Chael
I had a nightmare about a rogue planet hitting us and knocking Earth out of orbit. A quarter of Earth broke off and our planet froze over as it left our solar system.
 
C

coldvein

Banned
the "get the fuck off this planet" thing has always been curious to me...

for example, say a giant asteroid hits us, or there's a nuclear holocaust and the atmosphere is suddenly rendered unbreathable, uninhabitable -

THATS WHAT MARS IS.

we're not going anywhere better.
 
S

SolarPowered

Member
coldvein said:
the "get the fuck off this planet" thing has always been curious to me...

for example, say a giant asteroid hits us, or there's a nuclear holocaust and the atmosphere is suddenly rendered unbreathable, uninhabitable -

THATS WHAT MARS IS.

we're not going anywhere better.
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Humans can make it better. That is the great thing about that beautiful piece of gum lodged in our skulls. It can take us wherever we like so long as we have the motivation and resources.
 
Z

Zaptruder

Banned
How much damage can a 15 to 50 meter wide asteroid possibly do?

Maybe like a 200 megaton nuclear bomb, but it's not like we haven't set of plenty of bombs on the planet before.

The chance that it hits actual settled population... or an important location is pretty low. It won't even make much of a splash in the ocean in the likely event that it hits that; at least compared to earthquakes that cause tsunamis.
 
RangersFan

RangersFan

Member
Armageddon_13753_Medium.jpg

RIP Bruce Willis, you'll always be remembered for your sacrifice.
 
A

Apath

Member
Zaptruder said:
How much damage can a 15 to 50 meter wide asteroid possibly do?

Maybe like a 200 megaton nuclear bomb, but it's not like we haven't set of plenty of bombs on the planet before.

The chance that it hits actual settled population... or an important location is pretty low. It won't even make much of a splash in the ocean in the likely event that it hits that; at least compared to earthquakes that cause tsunamis.
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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Meteor_Crater

The other one was over three miles wide.
 
X

XMonkey

lacks enthusiasm.
Zaptruder said:
How much damage can a 15 to 50 meter wide asteroid possibly do?

Maybe like a 200 megaton nuclear bomb, but it's not like we haven't set of plenty of bombs on the planet before.

The chance that it hits actual settled population... or an important location is pretty low. It won't even make much of a splash in the ocean in the likely event that it hits that; at least compared to earthquakes that cause tsunamis.
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The other one is 3 miles wide, though.
 
C

coldvein

Banned
SolarPowered said:
Humans can make it better. That is the great thing about that beautiful piece of gum lodged in our skulls. It can take us wherever we like so long as we have the motivation and resources.
Click to expand...

you might be missing what i'm trying to say. we live on a planet that is capable of sustaining us. the atmosphere that sustains us could be destroyed today, tomorrow. mars isn't a better option. mars is just as inhospitable as a destroyed earth. if we have the tech to like.. build little things where a limited amount of people can survive, why would building them on mars be a better option than building them on a destroyed earth? we have to fly 50 years to get an inhospitable planet (mars) or we could just build that shit on an inhospitable planet (destroyed earth).
 
J

jerry113

Banned
coldvein said:
you might be missing what i'm trying to say. we live on a planet that is capable of sustaining us. the atmosphere that sustains us could be destroyed today, tomorrow. mars isn't a better option. mars is just as inhospitable as a destroyed earth. if we have the tech to like.. build little things where a limited amount of people can survive, why would building them on mars be a better option than building them on a destroyed earth? we have to fly 50 years to get an inhospitable planet (mars) or we could just build that shit on an inhospitable planet (destroyed earth).
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50 years?
 
O

Orcastar

Member
The fact that humanity as a whole is investing so little in space exploration/technology nowadays when our entire species could be exterminated basically at any moment by an asteroid is depressing to say the least.

coldvein said:
irrelevant! let's say it was a week. let's say we could get to mars in a week. what is the benefit of expending that much energy when we're just going to essentially be dealing with the same thing?
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You're assuming that some people on Earth would survive an asteroid impact.
 
S

SCULLIBUNDO

Banned
coldvein said:
irrelevant! let's say it was a week. let's say we could get to mars in a week. what is the benefit of expending that much energy when we're just going to essentially be dealing with the same thing?
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Terraforming. An end goal no matter how long it will take. Because say it takes us centuries to find the secret to make a previously inhospitable planet able to house a sizable population, then it's better to start that process BEFORE we're given a time limit.

If we were given news tomorrow that an asteroid the size of Europe was on a direct collision course with Earth and will DEFINITELY hit ninety years from now, I guarantee you that we wouldn't be sitting on our asses, but instead exploring every single option available to us.
 
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