Posted on 06/27/2011 10:08:33 AM PDT by blam
NASA: An Asteroid Will Barely Avoid Slamming Into Earth Today
David Edwards, The Raw Story
Jun. 27, 2011, 11:47 AM
Image: Flickr Ed Sweeny
Astronomers have just discovered an asteroid that is expected come close enough to Earth Monday that it will be visible with amateur telescopes.
The Lincoln Near-Earth Asteroid Research centre (LINEAR) spotted Asteroid 2011 MD on June 22. It has an orbit similar to Earth's.
The asteroid will be visible from parts of South Africa and Antarctica when it makes its closest approach at 1:14 p.m. EDT (1714 GMT), passing just 7,500 miles (12,000 kilometers) from the Earth's surface. The rock will be so close that its trajectory will be sharply altered by the Earth's gravity.
"There is no chance that 2011 MD will hit Earth but scientists will use the close pass as opportunity to study it w/ radar observations," NASA's @AsteroidWatch tweeted last week.
Scientists say there is no danger of the bus-sized object striking Earth this time, but an impact is possible when it makes the next pass in 2022.
"Asteroid 2011 MD measures about 10 meters. Stony asteroids less than 25 m would break up in Earth's atmosphere & not cause ground damage," NASA wrote on their Twitter page.
The record for near-miss asteroids was set in February when 2011 CQ1 came with 3,400 miles (5,471 kilometers) of the planet.
Image: NASA
(Excerpt) Read more at businessinsider.com ...
Of course, if their calculations are far enough off that it hits us, do you trust them on the size calculations?
I cant get anyone from Santiago on the phone. hmmm...
The bugs attack Earth with a meteor, destroying Buenos Aires. Would you like to know more?
I would like to know how I can sneak away with Denise Richards in an escape pod. As we would be the only surviving members of the human race it would be our responsibility to repopulate the solar system.
cant typ rite now...runingfor shlter!
(Oh, wait! You can run, but you can’t HIDE!)
Return of the Mother Ship?
I think it missed us.
Unless the government tinkering with the AC power frequency has screwed my clocks up again and the time is incor.............
Oh man. I just remembered the grisly fate of the guy who literally did share an escape pod with Denise Richards in the first film. But I guess it wasn’t her fault.
If it would stir up a dust cloud and lower the temp in Texas I’m all for it hitting. I’m tired of this heat!
You know I’m just kidding.
We Need Rico’s Roughneck’s, for sure.
(And pilots like Carmen Ibanez)
I’d actually like to see it impact an isolated area, for study purposes.
VW bus?
School bus? (standard vs the short bus for the slow kids)
Trailways size bus?
The British, double decker type tour bus?
Indian bus, complete with 200 people hanging off the roof & sides?
I did. So, I saw the sequels.
Skip them. Trust me.
Besides, it's pretty hard to beat Doogie Hauser as a Nazi Telepath. Once you've hit that bar, where can you go from there?
Question is, would Laz have hit the earth?
bttt
Summer just started for Texas...Better get used to it.
With the hot steamy humidity down there, just pretend your an astronaut, exploring the surface of Venus.
NASA only tells us about the asteroids that are going to miss.
Federal service guarantees citizenship.
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