NASA: Small asteroid to pass within Earth-Moon system on Tuesday

[News_Editor]

NASA: Small asteroid to pass within Earth-Moon system on Tuesday

2010-10-12 04:21:47 GMT+7 (ICT)

PASADENA, CALIFORNIA (BNO NEWS) -- A small asteroid will fly past Earth within the Earth-moon system on early Tuesday morning, according to the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory on Monday.

NASA said the asteroid, which has been given the name 2010 TD54, will have its closest approach to Earth's surface at an altitude of about 45,000 kilometers (27,960 miles) at 6.50 EDT a.m. (1050 GMT). At that time, the asteroid will be over southeastern Asia in the vicinity of Singapore. During its flyby, NASA added, Asteroid 2010 TD54 has zero probability of impacting Earth.

The asteroid was first discovered on Saturday by the NASA-sponsored Catalina Sky Survey near Tucson, Arizona when it was doing routine monitoring of the skies. 2010 TD54 is estimated to be about 5 to 10 meters (16 to 33 feet) wide, making it a relatively small asteroid.

"Due to its small size, the asteroid would require a telescope of moderate size to be viewed," the Laboratory said. "A five-meter-sized near-Earth asteroid from the undiscovered population of about 30 million would be expected to pass daily within a lunar distance, and one might strike Earth's atmosphere about every 2 years on average."

NASA said that even if 2010 TD54 would enter Earth's atmosphere, which it has no chance of doing so, it would most likely burn up high in the atmosphere and cause no damage to Earth's surface.

-- © BNO News All rights reserved 2010-10-12

[KRS1]

...?!?! only found the asteroid on this previous Saturday?

If there was a much larger one headed directly towards Earth, it doesn't look like there would be much warning....and we can kiss our a$$es goodbye

[Goshawk]

...?!?! only found the asteroid on this previous Saturday?

If there was a much larger one headed directly towards Earth, it doesn't look like there would be much warning....and we can kiss our a$$es goodbye

the guys at the Near Earth Object Program a division of NASA / JPL & the Catalina Sky Survey in Tucson, Az. are the main ones doing the looking & protecting of our heads.. apparantly

this one is close.. but a double, triple or quadruple+ in mass & then what...?

edit: sure as eggs is eggs, that big one(s) is out there....

Edited October 12, 2010 by Goshawk

[ScubaBuddha]

From howstuffworks.com:

"An asteroid striking our planet -- it's the stuff of science fiction. Many movies and books have portrayed this possibility ("Deep Impact," "Armageddon," "Lucifer's Hammer," and so on).

An asteroid impact is also the stuff of science fact. There are obvious craters on Earth (and the moon) that show us a long history of large objects hitting the planet. The most famous asteroid ever is the one that hit Earth 65 million years ago. It's thought that this asteroid threw so much moisture and dust in to the atmosphere that it cut off sunlight, lowering temperatures worldwide and causing the extinction of the dinosaurs.

So, what if an asteroid were to hit Earth today?

Any asteroid falling from the sky would have a tremendous amount of energy. Here's a typical example. In 2028, the asteroid 1997XF11 will come extremely close to Earth but will miss the planet. If something were to change and it did hit Earth, what you would have is a mile-wide asteroid striking the planet's surface at about 30,000 mph. An asteroid that big traveling at that speed has the energy roughly equal to a 1 million megaton bomb. It's very likely that an asteroid like this would wipe out most of the life on the planet.

It's difficult to imagine 1 million megatons, so let's try some smaller sizes. Let's say that an asteroid the size of a house crashed on Earth at 30,000 mph. It would have an amount of energy roughly equal to the bomb that fell on Hiroshima -- perhaps 20 kilotons. An asteroid like this would flatten reinforced concrete buildings up to half a mile from ground zero, and flatten wooden structures perhaps a mile and a half from ground zero. It would, in other words, do extensive damage to any city.

If the asteroid is as big as a 20-story building (200 feet on a side), it has an amount of energy equal to the largest nuclear bombs made today -- on the order of 25 to 50 megatons. An asteroid like this would flatten reinforced concrete buildings five miles from ground zero. It would completely destroy most major cities in the United States.

By the time you get up to a mile-wide asteroid, you are working in the 1 million megaton range. This asteroid has the energy that's 10 million times greater than the bomb that fell on Hiroshima. It's able to flatten everything for 100 to 200 miles out from ground zero. In other words, if a mile-wide asteroid were to directly hit New York City, the force of the impact probably would completely flatten every single thing from Washington D.C. to Boston, and would cause extensive damage perhaps 1,000 miles out -- that's as far away as Chicago. The amount of dust and debris thrown up into the atmosphere would block out the sun and cause most living things on the planet to perish. If an asteroid that big were to land in the ocean, it would cause massive tidal waves hundreds of feet high that would completely scrub the coastlines in the vicinity.

In other words, if an asteroid strikes Earth, it will be a really, really bad day no matter how big it is. If the asteroid is a mile in diameter, it's likely to wipe out life on the planet. Let's hope that doesn't happen anytime soon!"

Source: http://science.howstuffworks.com/nature/natural-disasters/asteroid-hits-earth.htm

[Tokay]

Does that translate into a lucky lotto number or anything?

[Spee]

Let's hope that doesn't happen anytime soon!"

Asteroids hit the Earth all the time. Most are small and burn up in the atmosphere. Some do impact and there are all kinds of stories of people finding the debris. Fortunately, all of these objects, small and large, follow the laws of orbital mechanics. So anything due to hit the Earth would be well known years in advance. Just to be clear, anything inside of a few hundred thousand miles is considered a near miss in the celestial context. But in actuality, anything outside of geosync orbit is no big deal other than to astrophysicists.

A huge object making a direct hit on Earth would have major consequences as you suggest, but would most likely not be catastrophic to most of the world's population. Personally, I'd be much more worried about a major object hitting the moon. Inserting a major perturbation into the lunar orbit would affect tides, seasons, ocean levels and all of the after effects that these things would cause.

[Soutpeel]

Tin foil hat time again me thinks:rolleyes:

[jayjay0]

From howstuffworks.com:

"An asteroid striking our planet -- it's the stuff of science fiction. Many movies and books have portrayed this possibility ("Deep Impact," "Armageddon," "Lucifer's Hammer," and so on).

An asteroid impact is also the stuff of science fact. There are obvious craters on Earth (and the moon) that show us a long history of large objects hitting the planet. The most famous asteroid ever is the one that hit Earth 65 million years ago. It's thought that this asteroid threw so much moisture and dust in to the atmosphere that it cut off sunlight, lowering temperatures worldwide and causing the extinction of the dinosaurs.

So, what if an asteroid were to hit Earth today?

Any asteroid falling from the sky would have a tremendous amount of energy. Here's a typical example. In 2028, the asteroid 1997XF11 will come extremely close to Earth but will miss the planet. If something were to change and it did hit Earth, what you would have is a mile-wide asteroid striking the planet's surface at about 30,000 mph. An asteroid that big traveling at that speed has the energy roughly equal to a 1 million megaton bomb. It's very likely that an asteroid like this would wipe out most of the life on the planet.

It's difficult to imagine 1 million megatons, so let's try some smaller sizes. Let's say that an asteroid the size of a house crashed on Earth at 30,000 mph. It would have an amount of energy roughly equal to the bomb that fell on Hiroshima -- perhaps 20 kilotons. An asteroid like this would flatten reinforced concrete buildings up to half a mile from ground zero, and flatten wooden structures perhaps a mile and a half from ground zero. It would, in other words, do extensive damage to any city.

If the asteroid is as big as a 20-story building (200 feet on a side), it has an amount of energy equal to the largest nuclear bombs made today -- on the order of 25 to 50 megatons. An asteroid like this would flatten reinforced concrete buildings five miles from ground zero. It would completely destroy most major cities in the United States.

By the time you get up to a mile-wide asteroid, you are working in the 1 million megaton range. This asteroid has the energy that's 10 million times greater than the bomb that fell on Hiroshima. It's able to flatten everything for 100 to 200 miles out from ground zero. In other words, if a mile-wide asteroid were to directly hit New York City, the force of the impact probably would completely flatten every single thing from Washington D.C. to Boston, and would cause extensive damage perhaps 1,000 miles out -- that's as far away as Chicago. The amount of dust and debris thrown up into the atmosphere would block out the sun and cause most living things on the planet to perish. If an asteroid that big were to land in the ocean, it would cause massive tidal waves hundreds of feet high that would completely scrub the coastlines in the vicinity.

In other words, if an asteroid strikes Earth, it will be a really, really bad day no matter how big it is. If the asteroid is a mile in diameter, it's likely to wipe out life on the planet. Let's hope that doesn't happen anytime soon!"

Source: http://science.howst...-hits-earth.htm

Question

You stated

"the largest nuclear bombs made today -- on the order of 25 to 50 megatons. An asteroid like this would flatten reinforced concrete buildings five miles from ground zero. It would completely destroy most major cities in the United States."

It seems to me that with today's technology and a bomb that big we should be able to eliminate a asteroid that big or at least change its trajectory. Am I wrong with this assumption?

[whybother]

Question

You stated

"the largest nuclear bombs made today -- on the order of 25 to 50 megatons. An asteroid like this would flatten reinforced concrete buildings five miles from ground zero. It would completely destroy most major cities in the United States."

It seems to me that with today's technology and a bomb that big we should be able to eliminate a asteroid that big or at least change its trajectory. Am I wrong with this assumption?

Bruce Willis is getting a bit old for that now.

[steelepulse]

From howstuffworks.com:

"An asteroid striking our planet -- it's the stuff of science fiction. Many movies and books have portrayed this possibility ("Deep Impact," "Armageddon," "Lucifer's Hammer," and so on).

An asteroid impact is also the stuff of science fact. There are obvious craters on Earth (and the moon) that show us a long history of large objects hitting the planet. The most famous asteroid ever is the one that hit Earth 65 million years ago. It's thought that this asteroid threw so much moisture and dust in to the atmosphere that it cut off sunlight, lowering temperatures worldwide and causing the extinction of the dinosaurs.

So, what if an asteroid were to hit Earth today?

Any asteroid falling from the sky would have a tremendous amount of energy. Here's a typical example. In 2028, the asteroid 1997XF11 will come extremely close to Earth but will miss the planet. If something were to change and it did hit Earth, what you would have is a mile-wide asteroid striking the planet's surface at about 30,000 mph. An asteroid that big traveling at that speed has the energy roughly equal to a 1 million megaton bomb. It's very likely that an asteroid like this would wipe out most of the life on the planet.

It's difficult to imagine 1 million megatons, so let's try some smaller sizes. Let's say that an asteroid the size of a house crashed on Earth at 30,000 mph. It would have an amount of energy roughly equal to the bomb that fell on Hiroshima -- perhaps 20 kilotons. An asteroid like this would flatten reinforced concrete buildings up to half a mile from ground zero, and flatten wooden structures perhaps a mile and a half from ground zero. It would, in other words, do extensive damage to any city.

If the asteroid is as big as a 20-story building (200 feet on a side), it has an amount of energy equal to the largest nuclear bombs made today -- on the order of 25 to 50 megatons. An asteroid like this would flatten reinforced concrete buildings five miles from ground zero. It would completely destroy most major cities in the United States.

By the time you get up to a mile-wide asteroid, you are working in the 1 million megaton range. This asteroid has the energy that's 10 million times greater than the bomb that fell on Hiroshima. It's able to flatten everything for 100 to 200 miles out from ground zero. In other words, if a mile-wide asteroid were to directly hit New York City, the force of the impact probably would completely flatten every single thing from Washington D.C. to Boston, and would cause extensive damage perhaps 1,000 miles out -- that's as far away as Chicago. The amount of dust and debris thrown up into the atmosphere would block out the sun and cause most living things on the planet to perish. If an asteroid that big were to land in the ocean, it would cause massive tidal waves hundreds of feet high that would completely scrub the coastlines in the vicinity.

In other words, if an asteroid strikes Earth, it will be a really, really bad day no matter how big it is. If the asteroid is a mile in diameter, it's likely to wipe out life on the planet. Let's hope that doesn't happen anytime soon!"

Source: http://science.howst...-hits-earth.htm

Question

You stated

"the largest nuclear bombs made today -- on the order of 25 to 50 megatons. An asteroid like this would flatten reinforced concrete buildings five miles from ground zero. It would completely destroy most major cities in the United States."

It seems to me that with today's technology and a bomb that big we should be able to eliminate a asteroid that big or at least change its trajectory. Am I wrong with this assumption?

I was watching Discovery or History Channel a few months ago and there was a program about this. There are a few different options, but it's kind of difficult to test them, and who's going to pay?