On Friday, February 15, 2013 Asteroid DA14 flew past the Earth approximately 27,000 km away, closer than many of our communication and weather satellites. The asteroid was about 45m in diameter – often described as “half a football field” in size. This asteroid was first discovered in February 2012 by amateur astronomers in Spain. Fortunately, the asteroid did not impact the Earth and the odds of this asteroid impacting the Earth in the foreseeable future are very small. For more information, click here.
In 1908, a similar sized asteroid was believed to have caused the Tungusta event. In a remote part of Siberia, Russia, an asteroid exploded above the ground and devastated over 2,000 square kilometres of forest. For more information on the Tungusta Event, click here.
Coincidentally, also on Friday February 15, 2013 a meteorite about the size of a school bus, burned up in the atmosphere above the city of Chelyabinsk, Russia. The sonic boom broke hundreds of windows. For more information, click here.
- Asteroid 2012 DA14 close approach to Earth showing the orbit of 2012 DA14 relative to Earth. Note that the asteroid not only passes much closer to Earth than the Moon’s orbit, but even closer than geosynchonous satellites (e.g., satellite TV satellites). NASA/JPL
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