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With concerns of the Coronavirus Outbreak the media has been less involved with other matters. As a result I would like to post something unrelated to that of the virus. The linked asteroid collision map is a simulation that lets ordinary users like you take the powers of nature into your hands and view the destruction of asteroid collisions in different magnitudes and mediums. It's extremely interesting to see how a relatively small object can wreak havoc on society because of it's high impact speed. I believe that having tools similar to this is important because it raises awareness to...

As an ancient, carbon-rich asteroid, Ryugu is thought to be a time capsule of solar system history. To read that history, Hayabusa2 explored Ryugu from June 2018 to November 2019, and grabbed two samples from the asteroid to bring back to Earth (SN: 7/11/19). Hayabusa2 observed how the asteroid’s surface retained and released heat, a clue to its composition and structure. Dense rocks take in heat slowly and hold that heat for longer; more porous rocks change temperature quickly, like sand on a beach. Ryugu’s heat map shows that it’s about 50 percent porous, meaning half of it is holes,...

The race for the Democrat nomination has narrowed to two leading candidates. President Trump is undoubtedly preparing for either Bernie Sanders or Joe Biden as his 2020 election opponent. We should be able, at this point, to make a reasonable guess at how the president would fare against either of these candidates.

According to the provided article, asteroid 99942 Apophis has a 1 in 40 chance of hitting earth in 2029. If it misses in 2029, it would have an even higher chance of hitting in 2036. According to NASA and other reputable sources the asteroid is of 370 meters in diameter which is about the size of the Eiffel Tower. When you plug this into a simulation like the asteroid collision map, you can see that its large magnitude can cause some pretty serious damages depending on the location it impacts. According to the simulation, some of these effects are earthquakes,...

The event destroyed a village found in the Abu Hureyra dig site in Syria... The impact is also believed to have contributed to the extinction of many large animals, including mammoths as well as North American horses and camels. Experts believe the explosion helped bring about the demise of the North American Clovis culture and usher in an episode of climatic cooling. The Abu Hureyra site is located on the edge of a vast region known as the Younger Dryas Boundary (YDB) strewnfield, which incorporates around 30 sites across Europe, the Americas and parts of the Middle East. The strewnfield...

Still, excitement is building among both professional and amateur astronomers about the upcoming flyby of asteroid (52768) 1998 OR2 – the biggest asteroid due to fly by Earth this year – coming closest on April 29, 2020. This space rock is probably at least a mile wide (1.8 km) and maybe 2 1/2 times that big (4.1 km). Closest approach is April 29 around 5:56 a.m. Eastern Daylight Time (09:56 UTC; translate UTC to your time). No access to a telescope? No problem. The Virtual Telescope Project in Rome will host a free, online public viewing of the asteroid on...

Two asteroids projected to come zooming past planet Earth on 2 March have had NASA on alert, with its Center for Near-Earth Object Studies (CNEOS) tracking the wayward space rocks that possess orbits intersecting Earth’s trajectory. The first asteroid to venture into Earth’s vicinity has been dubbed 2020 DZ3. With an orbit that goes through the paths of Mercury and Venus, according to CNEOS’ database, the asteroid has built up a speed of over 48,000 miles per hour and boasts an estimated diameter of about 154 feet (47 Meters). This asteroid’s next near-Earth approach is calculated to happen on 28...

The Japanese space agency JAXA sent the Hayabusa probe to Itokawa, which collected soil samples and brought them safely back to Earth—for the first time in the history of space travel. This valuable cargo arrived in 2010 and since then, the samples have been the subject of intensive research. A team from Japan and Jena has now succeeded in coaxing a previously undiscovered secret from some of these tiny sample particles: the surface of the dust grains is covered with tiny wafer-thin crystals of iron. This observation surprised Prof. Falko Langenhorst and Dr. Dennis Harries of Friedrich Schiller University in...

Scientists say that meteors hit earth 17 times a day. However, we don't even notice because these meteors are either too small or hit in uninhabited areas in the world. The reason that damages are unlikely and almost never occur from these daily impacts is that most of the world is uninhabited and no one is near the impact location to experience or report the impact and its location. However, the impacts that are recorded are often added to a list for scientists and enthusiasts to study. For example, a website called asteroid collision location map is a source that...

A visiting mini-moon is circling Earth, according to astronomers who discovered the cosmic squatter in our planet's orbit.The tiny asteroid, dubbed 2020 CD3, was spotted by astronomers in Tucson, Arizona, on Feb. 15. "BIG NEWS," Kacper Wierzchos, a researcher with the Catalina Sky Survey at the University of Arizona's Lunar and Planetary Lab, tweeted Tuesday. "Earth has a new temporarily captured object/Possible mini-moon called 2020 CD3. On the night of Feb. 15, my Catalina Sky Survey teammate Teddy Pruyne and I found a 20th magnitude object."Wierzchos said that the object measures about 6 feet to 11 feet across and that...

Although major killer asteroids are extremely rare, minor asteroids called meteors often impact earth going unnoticed. Most of the time they burn up in the atmosphere. However, if they do not these smaller scale asteroids can weigh anywhere from 20 pounds to upwards of hundreds or thousands of pounds. Maybe even more! Fortunately, these smaller scale asteroids do not usually collide with highly populated areas and mainly impact the earths large swaths of uninhabited areas. Most of these collisions go unreported or unnoticed. However, reported collisions are usually added to a list. For example, a map simulation from an asteroid...

Pallas, which is third largest object in the asteroid belt and named after the Greek goddess of wisdom, can be seen in detailed images published Monday in a study in Nature Astronomy. Researchers believe that the asteroid's pockmarked surface is a result of its unique orbit. Pallas has a tilted orbit, so it is basically smashing through the asteroid belt at an angle, unlike most other similar objects. The astronomers obtained 11 series of images, observing Pallas from different angles as it rotated. After pulling the images together, the researchers generated a three-dimensional reconstruction of the shape of the asteroid,...

A relatively large asteroid that would cause damage if it hit earth will undergo a near miss of earth, flying right by. There was earlier controversy as to whether the asteroid would hit, but now scientists say it won't hit. Previously a 1-40 chance of colliding. However, if the around 370 meter asteroid actually did hit earth in a high density area.. it would be a disaster. According to a simulation from an Asteroid Damage Simulator, the asteroid would cause hundreds of thousands of casualties and hundreds of buildings would collapse in range. Fortunately, this will not happen as the...

Peter Brown, a professor in Western University’s physics and astronomy department, tweeted a series of photos of the spectacle. He dubbed it the Kintail fireball, for the spot near the Canadian shoreline of Lake Huron where it was believed to have crossed over before going into the water. On a map, Kintail is directly across the lake from Michigan’s Thumb. “Kintail fireball orbit from last night place origins firmly from the asteroid belt. The initial mass was somewhere between a few to ten kilograms - softball sized. Not quite as bright as the full moon," Brown posted on Twitter. Fireballs...

Meteor Explosion Near Puerto Rico Captured by a Satellite Meteorologist Danielle Banks says a NOAA satellite captured what appears to be a meteor exploding near Puerto Rico. At a Glance The bright ball of fire was captured in satellite images. Residents posted photos and video to social media. One astronomer guessed it was several feet in length. A bright ball of fire shot across the sky in Puerto Rico Friday afternoon, prompting local residents to speculate on what it was, and to wonder if it was a bad omen for the disaster-stricken island. Images of the fireball were captured by...

The first asteroid that will fly close to Earth on Saturday has been identified by NASA’s Center for Near-Earth Object Studies as 2020 AH1. This asteroid is currently moving at an average speed of almost 18,000 miles per hour...estimated that this asteroid is about 246 feet wide. Trailing behind 2020 AH1 is an asteroid known as 2009 BH2... this asteroid measures about 656 feet wide, making it the largest space rock in the group. 2009 BH2 is currently flying towards Earth at a velocity of 40,000 miles per hour. The last asteroid that will visit Earth’s vicinity on Saturday is...

The popular Jupiter Shield theory proposes that the planet acts like a giant space shield due to its huge mass causing it to suck in or deflect dangerous debris. However, this shield theory is slowly falling out of favor and one of the leading critics is space expert Kevin Grazier. [Kevin R. Grazier, Ph.D.] He's published several papers explaining why he thinks Jupiter is a "sniper rather than a shield". Recently, he's been aiming to prove how this 'sniper-like' process works. Grazier's extensive work could put the Jupiter Shield theory in jeopardy. He told Gizmodo: "Actually, I wouldn't say that...

The closest it is expected to get is four lunar distances -- about 1 million miles – at approximately 9 am EST. Tracking is available on The Sky Live, which calculates that 2019 AE3 will technically be visible from New York between around 1 a.m. and 10 am. The event is set to occur just three days after five sizeable NEOs flew by the earth on the same day...[including one] similar in size to 2019 AE3 practically skimmed it just 415,000 miles away.

More space rocks seem to be approaching Earth’s territory, and a new report reveals another one may bring in disasters. NASA has spotted an asteroid traveling at 63,000 miles per hour, and there is a possibility that it can impact the Earth. Express reports that the space agency recently tracked down an asteroid named 101955 Bennu but formally known as 1999 RQ36, hurtling towards Earth at a rapid speed of 63,000 miles per hour. NASA has not only labeled this a Potentially Hazardous Object or PHO, but they have also classified RQ36 with the second-highest rating on the Palermo Technical...

The massive space rock, which is known as 310442 (2000 CH59), will be closest to our planet on December 26 at 2:54 a.m. EST, according to NASA. The space agency's Center for Near Earth Object Studies (CNEOS) estimates its diameter will be in the range of 919 to 2,034 feet. Paul Chodas, director of CNEOS), told Newsweek. "So it is prudent to keep tracking [them] for decades to come and to study how their orbits might be evolving." CH59 will be about 4.5 million miles from our planet the morning...