[ad_1]
An asteroid the size of the Eiffel Tower flew through Earth on March 5. – and NASA scientists say their next focus will be in 2029. which may cause a collision with satellites in flight.
On the night of March 5, asteroid 99942 Apophis (named for the demonic serpent god of chaos of ancient Egypt) flew over Earth at a distance of 16.7 million kilometers.
While this is a safe distance, NASA scientists say that the next time you fly across Earth in 2029, you will be only 31,865 km from the planet. It is quite close, more than 10 times less than the distance between the Earth and the Moon (385,000 km), and close enough to collide with satellites in high orbit.
As it may seem, NASA has released an animation showing how close Apophis will fly across our planet:
VIDEO: The asteroid Apophis and Earth get closer
When an asteroid was discovered in 2004 in 2029, some researchers initially estimated that it could hit Earth in 2029. Therefore, this may explain the name of its demonic strain.
Fortunately, NASA now says that it will fly through the earth without touching the planet and, in fact, provide an opportunity to collect valuable data from the asteroid.
“2029 the close flight of Apophis will be an incredible opportunity for science. We will observe the asteroid with optical and radar telescopes. By observing the radars, we will be able to see details of the surface that are only a few meters in size,” said Marina Brozović, radar scientist at NASA’s Jet Engine Laboratory in Pasadena, California.
The Apophis is 341 m wide, the height of the Eiffel Tower.
It is so big and the flight will be so close that people will be able to see it with the naked eye. It will be closest to Earth in 2029. April 14, at about 1 pm at night Lithuanian time, and in one hour in the night sky it will fly a distance equal to the Atlantic Ocean. At some point, it will move across the width of the Moon in a minute and become as bright as the Little Turtle Circles.
[ad_2]
