An asteroid about the size of a 20-story building is big enough to wipe out an entire city of skyscrapers. It is scheduled to fly between the Earth and the Moon on March 24th and March 25th..
Discovered just a month ago 2023 DZ2 It will pass within 320,000 miles of the Moon on Saturday and cross the Indian Ocean at about 17,500 miles per hour. It will be closest to Earth at around 3:50 PM on March 25th.
[Related: DART left an asteroid crime scene. This mission is on deck to investigate it.]
By planetary standards, this close encounter will give astronomers the opportunity to study this cosmic rock from a distance of just over 100,000 miles. This distance is only half the distance from Earth to the Moon. This means that newly discovered asteroids can be seen with binoculars or telescopes from the right spot.Them in the northern hemisphere It has the highest chance of spotting with a telescope on the evening of March 24th.
“Although this ‘city killer’ is not likely to hit Earth, its proximity provides an excellent opportunity for observation,” said Richard Moisle, the European Space Agency’s planetary defense director, in a statement. rice field. According to Associated Press.
NASA further confirmed this gentle message on twitter Earlier this week, it added that the 2023 DZ2 approach would help astronomers learn more about the asteroid. “Astronomers from the International Asteroid Warning Network will use this approach approach to learn as much as possible about 2023 DZ2 in a short period of time. It’s a good practice for NASA wrote in a tweet.
For a while, 2023 DZ2 had a very slim chance of impacting Earth on March 27, 2026. Sentry Risk Table As of March 21, 2023.
of virtual telescope project We will also provide a live webcast of the 2023 DZ2 approach.
group of astronomers Spain’s Roque de los Muchachos Observatory discovered an asteroid in late February We have studied space rock sizes, orbits, and expected orbits. Estimated to be 140 to 310 feet in diameter.
Name of another asteroid also discovered in February DW in 2023 could pose greater risks to the planet down the road. The European Space Agency puts it at the top of its risk list, predicting a 1 in 607 chance it could impact Earth. Estimates suggest that the collision could occur around February 14, 2046, but later from 2047 to Valentine’s Day, 2051.
[Related: NASA’s first attempt to smack an asteroid was picture perfect.]
Meanwhile, scientists are learning more about asteroids following NASA’s successful DART mission in September. In September 2022, NASA Planetary Defense Officer Lindley Johnson said: pop science DART is a “significant milestone” in humanity’s ability to protect the planet from such dark consequences.
“This is the first time that humanity has acquired knowledge and technology, and we are trying to reorganize things in our solar system a little bit to make it a more welcoming place for life,” Johnson said.
The European Space Agency’s Hera will soon follow DART’s trajectory to study its aftermath in more detail. The mission is scheduled to depart from Cape Canaveral, Florida, in October 2024 on the wing of SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket. In the itinerary as of March 2023, Didymos and its small moon Dimorphus And about 6 months of tourism in the second half of 2026. If conditions allow spatula Attempt a perfect landing on Didymos.
