Posted on 02/15/2013 4:17:13 AM PST by LadyEleanor
Edited on 02/15/2013 4:55:53 AM PST by Admin Moderator. [history]
MOSCOW -- The Russian Academy of Sciences is estimating the meteor that streaked into the skies over the Ural Mountains and caused shock waves that injured more than 400 people weighed about 10 tons (11 tons avoirdupois).
The academy said in a statement hours after the Friday morning fall that the meteor entered the Earth's atmosphere at a speed of at least 54,000 kph (33,000 mph) and shattered about 30-50 kilometers (18-32 miles) above ground.
The fall caused explosions that broke glass over a wide area. The Emergency Ministry says more than 500 people sought treatment after the blasts and that 34 of them were hospitalized.
snip
Oh Yeah.
Have you watched the video? It’s amazing.
It is believed that the incident may be connected to asteroid 2012 DA14, which measures 45 to 95 meters in diameter and will be passing by Earth tonight at around 19:25 GMT at the record close range of 27,000 kilometers.
More interesting than the meteor was the clear sky in Russia. EVERY piece of footage from that God forsaken place is always overcast and dreary.
Putin buying 570 tons of gold last week had nothing to do with what might be happening .. move along folks
sure would like the name and video of that scientist yesterday laughing off the possibility of smaller meteors in a shower traveling with the asteroid headed our way
A 6-meters wide crater is found near Chebarkul lake.
Today about 2:20-2:30pm ET.
Yep. And I got cold chills down my back.
Today, 15-Feb-2013, at 1425 hours, EDT.
http://science.nasa.gov/science-news/science-at-nasa/2013/13feb_asteroidcoverage/
NASA Television will provide commentary starting at 2 p.m. EST (11 a.m. PST) on Friday, Feb. 15, during the close, but safe, flyby of a small near-Earth asteroid named “2012 DA14.” NASA places a high priority on tracking asteroids and protecting our home planet from them. This flyby will provide a unique opportunity for researchers to study a near-Earth object up close.
The half-hour broadcast from NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Pasadena, Calif., will incorporate real-time animation to show the location of the asteroid in relation to Earth, along with live or near real-time views of the asteroid from observatories in Australia, weather permitting.
At the time of its closest approach to Earth at approximately 2:25 p.m. EST (11:25 a.m. PST/ 19:25 UTC), the asteroid will be about 17,150 miles (27,600 kilometers) above Earth’s surface. Measuring approximately 50 meters wide, 2012 DA14 is about half the size of a football field. Since regular sky surveys began in the 1990s, astronomers have never seen an object this big come so close to our planet. The asteroid will actually pass closer to Earth than many manmade satellites.
The commentary will be available via NASA TV and streamed live online at http://www.nasa.gov/ntv and http://www.ustream.tv/nasajpl2
In addition to the commentary, near real-time imagery of the asteroid’s flyby before and after closest approach, made available to NASA by astronomers in Australia and Europe, weather permitting, will be streamed beginning at about noon EST (9 a.m. PST) and continuing through the afternoon at http://www.ustream.tv/nasajpl2
Also, a Ustream feed of the flyby from a telescope at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala., will be streamed for three hours starting at 9 p.m. EST (8 p.m. CST). To view the feed and ask researchers questions about the flyby via Twitter, visit http://www.ustream.tv/channel/nasa-msfc
For more information, including graphics and animations showing the flyby of 2012 DA14, visit
http://www.nasa.gov/asteroidflyby
Can’t be, there’s no live thread for it.
I’d bet money the orbit of this bolide turns out to be completely different from 2012 DA14, meaning it’s unrelated.
Interesting commentary on some of those BBC videos. Apparently most of the destruction was caused by the force of the sonic boom as the meteor passed overhead.
Thanks.
We are long overdue for sensible meteor control.
The flash is the meteor literally exploding from overheating and overpressure; I'd suspect that's the cause of any damage, rather than a simple sonic boom (the meteor was still at a very high altitude at the time.
I just found myself a victim of the information age. We don’t stop to consider one story and take in what’s important about it. Here, a meteor flashes through the sky, I should stop and consider human frailty and God’s power, but I’m pulled away from contemplation by a story about that handicap Olympian killing his girlfriend.
Putin must be listening to Talk Radio!
Gold is Good, but at this point it might be wiser to invest in LEAD!
If it were a NUKE, there would be a lot more than 500 INJURED!
What a maroon.
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