Posted on 12/03/2024 7:56:17 AM PST by Red Badger
The location the asteroid will burn over.
Image Credit: PorcupenWorks/Shutterstock.com, modified by IFLScience
In a matter of hours, a small asteroid will burn over the Siberian skies. This is only the 11th time that an asteroid has been predicted to hit our planet before it actually happened, but it shows that the system of planetary defense is working!
At around 4:15 pm UTC today, the asteroid will burn in the atmosphere. The object is tiny, about 70 centimeters (27.6 inches) in diameter. It's not the smallest known asteroid – a previously predicted impactor holds that record for now. It's still pretty small and a testament to the observatories that can spot these tiny rocks and the software developed to quickly work out where and when they are going to hit.
The location the asteroid will burn over.
Image Credit: PorcupenWorks/Shutterstock.com, modified by IFLScience
In a matter of hours, a small asteroid will burn over the Siberian skies. This is only the 11th time that an asteroid has been predicted to hit our planet before it actually happened, but it shows that the system of planetary defense is working!
At around 4:15 pm UTC today, the asteroid will burn in the atmosphere. The object is tiny, about 70 centimeters (27.6 inches) in diameter. It's not the smallest known asteroid – a previously predicted impactor holds that record for now. It's still pretty small and a testament to the observatories that can spot these tiny rocks and the software developed to quickly work out where and when they are going to hit.
Everybody is Russian to get out of the way.
From the Greenland keyword, sorted:
In case you were wondering, the June 30, 1908 explosive impact (possibly a grazing pass through the atmosphere with debris hitting the surface) was at a very similar latitude to the predicted 2024 impact, but further west, north of the Angara River shown on the map, at 60.9N 101.9E.
UTC is a “flavor” of UT (Universal Time) and has nothing to do with noun-adjective order. UT is determined by the orientation of the earth to the Celestial Sphere. There is a CONVENTIONAL relationship between “sidereal time” - time determined by the transit of celestial objects and UT. The convention is intended to keep UT close to mean solar time, but the relationship is not exact, but close enough for practical purposes.
UT0 - is “station time”, time measured by any station observing the celestial sphere, uncorrected for polar drift (Chandler Wobble).
UT1 - is derived by combining measurements by many stations, and accounts for polar drift
UT2 - is similar to UT1 but accounts for the seasonal variation in the length of day caused by snow and ice accumulation in the northern hemisphere. UT2 is more uniform than UT1, as measured by atomic clocks. Considered obsolete these days because of the widespread availability of atomic time.
UTC - is an atomic timescale kept within 0.9 seconds of UT1 by the addition and subtraction of leap seconds. UTC is always offset from TAI by an integer number of leap seconds.
Other interesting and important timescales are
TAI - International Atomic Time, time kept by combining time determined by atomic clocks in dozen of national laboratories. TAI is “proper time on the geoid”, the conventional co-rotating mean sea level surface of the earth. Sea level varies due to local gravitational anomalies.
TT - Terrestrial Time, an atomic timescale intended to be a continuation of an older astronomical timescale called Ephemeris Time. TT is exactly 32.184 seconds ahead of TAI.
GPS - GPS time is time in seconds since January 6, 1980, the GPS epoch. GPS time is always exactly 19 seconds behind TAI.
GMT - Greenwich Mean Time is variously defined and deprecated in technical work. In practice it is a synonym for UTC
ZULU - ZULU was and is the the NATO designation for the time zone centered on the prime meridian. In practice ZULU time is identical to UTC. Colloquially, GMT, ZULU, and UTC are used interchangeably.
The event has apparently happened, NY Post has an article showing various pictures of a fireball seen near Lensk a few hours ago (it is late Tuesday night going on midnight in that part of Siberia). There are no reports of any damage.
It has only happen 11 times before.
Interesting shots!
Yeah people have been so bad now God throwing rocks at us omen?.
Or people on the Moon.................
Well, my UTC clock sayes 8:30 UTC, (2:30 CST)
NewScientist article with picture:
A small asteroid hit earth and burned up over siberia
Youtube link with several videos of the fireball.
Yeah something is.
The plot of Robert Heinlein’s “The Moon is a Harsh Mistress” is the colonists on The Moon wanted Independence from the Earth, but they had few weapons to use, but they had lots of rocks, BIG ROCKS they could launch at Earth. After a few large explosions in Earth’s atmosphere, they gained their independence...............
Like the one in 1908? 😃
Bet Pluto got a few in too after it’d not called a planet any more.
I liked the older website better:
Dramatic video shows bicycle tire-sized asteroid nearly hit Earth as ‘nice fireball in the sky’ illuminates Siberia
By Chris Nesi
Published Dec. 3, 2024, 2:37 p.m. ET
https://nypost.com/2024/12/03/us-news/asteroid-nearly-hits-earth-dramatically-illuminating-night-sky-over-siberia/
YouTube (6 seconds, turgid music)
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WN2Ni1UqgAk
And you say that because you don't think we are currently doing so ?
Scroll down to "All Sky Fireball Network" followed by "Near Earth Asteroids"
Yes.
At the time the article was written which was quite a few years ago.
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