Thursday, February 14, 2013
Asteroid will come close enough to Earth that our planet's gravitational pull will alter the orbit of the asteroid.
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Thursday, February 14
An asteroid the size of a cruise ship — 2012 DA14 — will safely bypass Earth on Feb. 15. But, and there IS a but ... in relative space distances, the asteroid is cutting it close — 17,200 miles from our planet or 1/13th the distance from the Earth to the moon, according to the Discovery News report. The asteroid is coming close enough that Earth's gravitational pull will affect its orbit around the sun, shortening it from 368 days to 317. If something the size of Asteroid 2012 DA14 did hit Earth, it would cause crippling damage on a local scale. According to the report, it is believed the object that wiped out a region of forest in Tunguska, Siberia, in 1908 was the approximate size of 2012 DA14. Scary stuff, huh? It gets a little …
Wednesday, February 13, 2013
Officials with Deep Space Industries, a company that plans to mine asteroids for gold, platinum and other minerals, say the rock could contain $65 billion of recoverable water and $130 billion in metals.
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Wednesday, February 13
Billions of dollars in valuable metals is expected to go zipping by the Earth on Friday. An asteroid the size of a cruise ship — 2012 DA14 — that will bypass our planet Feb. 15 could be worth almost $200 billion, according to prospective asteroid miners. In relative space distances, the asteroid is cutting it close to Earth — 17,200 miles, or 15 minutes, from our planet. But miners say the asteroid's orbit makes it too difficult to chase down, according to a report posted by Fox News. Officials with Deep Space Industries, a company that plans to mine asteroids for gold, platinum and other minerals, say the rock could contain $65 billion of recoverable water and $130 billion in metals. What do you think about asteroid mining ventures? …
Tuesday, February 12, 2013
Bill Nye, a.k.a. "The Science Guy," explains the effect an impact could have on Earth.
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Tuesday, February 12
On Friday, Feb. 15, asteroid 2012 DA14 will pass within 17,200 miles -- or 15 minutes -- of Earth, according to scientist Bill Nye. While the asteroid, which Nye said is comparable in size to the one responsible for the 1908 Tunguska event, is expected to pass harmlessly by, Nye said it is a very close shave relatively speaking. "This one will miss us by about 15 minutes," Nye explained. "Fifteen minutes difference and that's it." If it were not for those 15 minutes, life for millions of people could end. "If such a meteor were to hit Atlanta or New York City or Boston, that would be it for those municipalities," Nye said. As much as 1,200 square miles would be destroyed, Nye added. According to Nye, there are approximately 100,000 "Earth-…
