Scariest Asteroid To Date Heading To Earth, Capable Of Mass Extinction

originally posted by: planetyeck
It's the one that we don't hear about that will be the one that wipes us out.

Exactly, I dont believe for one minute they would tell us we are all doomed. What would be the point.

originally posted by: ArnoldNonymous
I'm not sure if anyone has scaled it down yet for easier understanding:

The Earth is a 42 foot ball of rock

The Moon is an 11 foot ball of rock a quarter mile away

The asteroid is a 1mm grain of sand "blazing by" 6.3 miles away

I always thought a close-call was defined as something that was at or within 1 lunar distance (distance from Earth to Moon ~ 240,000 mi)

hey now, you cant blame a guy for dreaming.

also, quit killing my dreams.

originally posted by: bluemooone2

Artist rendition of `Scariest Asteroid To Date`.

Distance from one object to another is not that important as is gravitational relativity. On it's journey towards the earth the ever slight tug between the two objects will increase and the earth will bend the path of the object a little as it passes by. The problem scientists have is the variable problem where a small chuck of something knocks it into a more direct path, or the effect of other bodies in the solar system, even the position of the sun in relation to it and the earth. That's why as a near miss it is alarming to some.

The other problem would of course be all of the smaller pieces that usually travel with the larger ones. Even a piece as small as one eighth the size of it is enough to cause wide scale destruction to some part of earth if it got slung our way.

So one way or the other, they're watching it closely.

I'm glad you are alive to enjoy your retort!
a reply to: olaru12

a reply to: olaru12

God gave us Free Will , Tragic events are NOT caused by God They are just Random.

originally posted by: Fromabove
Distance from one object to another is not that important as is gravitational relativity. On it's journey towards the earth the ever slight tug between the two objects will increase and the earth will bend the path of the object a little as it passes by. The problem scientists have is the variable problem where a small chuck of something knocks it into a more direct path, or the effect of other bodies in the solar system, even the position of the sun in relation to it and the earth. That's why as a near miss it is alarming to some.

The other problem would of course be all of the smaller pieces that usually travel with the larger ones. Even a piece as small as one eighth the size of it is enough to cause wide scale destruction to some part of earth if it got slung our way.

So one way or the other, they're watching it closely.

There is so much orbital data known about this object, that the fine tuning will be within a few hundred miles of what is now certainly not a "near miss". That data has already taken into account any gravitational anomalies presented by the Sun, Earth and Moon in the asteroid's present orbital vector. Nothing else can have any substantial effect other than these 3 at this stage of the CPA.

Additionally, if the object has any pieces traveling with it, they will be well within a few hundred miles of the main mass, so it is essentially not a situation to worry about either.

a reply to: olaru12

Guess this one has passed us by now? I hate how every web link repeats only the exact same information on things the same words just copied, clearly we will always only get one story and approved one that starts somewhere on anything and repeats.

a reply to: Char-Lee

asteroidwatch, also hast their twitter thingy and it says:

Yes. It went by early this morning at 7:25 am EDT.