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beskeptigal
SFN Die Hard
USA
3834 Posts |
 Posted - 07/03/2006 : 18:45:54
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Asteroid has near-collision with Earth: scientists sayquote:
Mon Jul 3, 12:53 PM ET
WASHINGTON (AFP) - An asteroid hurtling through space came within a hair's breadth -- in astronomical terms, at least -- of crashing into the Earth early Monday, US scientists have said.
Liars. There were no "scientists" making such a claim. The reporters' interpretation perhaps, but certainly no one I heard called this a near miss.
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HalfMooner
Dingaling
Philippines
15831 Posts |
Posted - 07/03/2006 : 18:54:29 [Permalink]
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quote:
Originally posted by beskeptigal
Asteroid has near-collision with Earth: scientists sayquote:
Mon Jul 3, 12:53 PM ET
WASHINGTON (AFP) - An asteroid hurtling through space came within a hair's breadth -- in astronomical terms, at least -- of crashing into the Earth early Monday, US scientists have said.
Liars. There were no "scientists" making such a claim. The reporters' interpretation perhaps, but certainly no one I heard called this a near miss.
No, B., the truth's even worse than that headline! From that article: quote:
In the case of Monday's asteroid, he said, scientists were able to reassure the public that there was never any great risk, but that it would stray off course and crash into the Earth.
[My emphasis.]
Yikes! Some "reassurance"! Note how both the reporter, and that bastard of a scientist, bury that tidbit of bad news way down in the article. ("First, the good news...")
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“Biology is just physics that has begun to smell bad.” —HalfMooner
Here's a link to Moonscape News, and one to its Archive. |
| Edited by - HalfMooner on 07/03/2006 19:10:54 |
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beskeptigal
SFN Die Hard
USA
3834 Posts |
Posted - 07/03/2006 : 19:21:16 [Permalink]
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| Just off The Onion wire service no doubt. |
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Ricky
SFN Die Hard
USA
4907 Posts |
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HalfMooner
Dingaling
Philippines
15831 Posts |
Posted - 07/03/2006 : 19:23:56 [Permalink]
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quote:
Originally posted by beskeptigal
Just off The Onion wire service no doubt.
No, directly cut-and-pasted from the article you linked to. Honest. No joke.
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“Biology is just physics that has begun to smell bad.” —HalfMooner
Here's a link to Moonscape News, and one to its Archive. |
| Edited by - HalfMooner on 07/03/2006 19:38:49 |
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Dr. Mabuse
Septic Fiend
Sweden
9688 Posts |
Posted - 07/03/2006 : 19:40:51 [Permalink]
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Dr. Mabuse - "When the going gets tough, the tough get Duct-tape..."
Dr. Mabuse whisper.mp3
"Equivocation is not just a job, for a creationist it's a way of life..." Dr. Mabuse
Support American Troops in Iraq:
Send them unarmed civilians for target practice..
Collateralmurder. |
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HalfMooner
Dingaling
Philippines
15831 Posts |
Posted - 07/03/2006 : 19:51:45 [Permalink]
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Mab, are you really willing to bet that an "unfortunate typo" is sufficient to stand as a guardian between us and a major extinction event?
Me, I'm outta this shithole!
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“Biology is just physics that has begun to smell bad.” —HalfMooner
Here's a link to Moonscape News, and one to its Archive. |
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Dr. Mabuse
Septic Fiend
Sweden
9688 Posts |
Posted - 07/03/2006 : 20:19:31 [Permalink]
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432,000 kilometers is beyond Moon's orbit... Roughly 30 times the diameter of Earth.
What kind of news agency is AFP anyway? |
Dr. Mabuse - "When the going gets tough, the tough get Duct-tape..."
Dr. Mabuse whisper.mp3
"Equivocation is not just a job, for a creationist it's a way of life..." Dr. Mabuse
Support American Troops in Iraq:
Send them unarmed civilians for target practice..
Collateralmurder. |
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HalfMooner
Dingaling
Philippines
15831 Posts |
Posted - 07/03/2006 : 20:41:04 [Permalink]
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quote:
Originally posted by Dr. Mabuse
What kind of news agency is AFP anyway?
A specialist news agency: Asteroids Foment Panic.
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“Biology is just physics that has begun to smell bad.” —HalfMooner
Here's a link to Moonscape News, and one to its Archive. |
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Chippewa
SFN Regular
USA
1496 Posts |
Posted - 07/03/2006 : 21:02:57 [Permalink]
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quote:
Originally posted by Dr. Mabuse
432,000 kilometers is beyond Moon's orbit... Roughly 30 times the diameter of Earth...
If 432,000 kilometers is reported as "within a hair's breadth" of Earth, than all the ladies in the Sports Illustrated Swimsuit Issue are much closer to me right now!
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Diversity, independence, innovation and imagination are progressive concepts ultimately alien to the conservative mind.
"TAX AND SPEND" IS GOOD! (TAX: Wealthy corporations who won't go poor even after taxes. SPEND: On public works programs, education, the environment, improvements.) |
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Randy
SFN Regular
USA
1990 Posts |
Posted - 07/03/2006 : 22:36:00 [Permalink]
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quote:
Originally posted by beskeptigal
Asteroid has near-collision with Earth: scientists sayquote:
Mon Jul 3, 12:53 PM ET
WASHINGTON (AFP) - An asteroid hurtling through space came within a hair's breadth -- in astronomical terms, at least -- of crashing into the Earth early Monday, US scientists have said.
Liars. There were no "scientists" making such a claim. The reporters' interpretation perhaps, but certainly no one I heard called this a near miss.
Actually, one could also say 'within a cosmic gnat's ass', and be as accurate as above, in a layman's sort of way. This asteroid is up to a half mile in diameter travelling at ten miles per second.
http://www.space.com/scienceastronomy/060626_asteroid_close.html
...a snippet from the above link:
"Asteroid 2004 XP14 is a member of a class of asteroids known as Apollo, which have Earth-crossing orbits. The name comes from 1862 Apollo, the first asteroid of this group to be discovered. There are now 1,989 known Apollos.
The size of 2004 XP 14 is not precisely known. But based on its brightness, the diameter is believed to be somewhere in the range of 1,345 to 3,018-feet (410 to 920 meters). That's between a quarter mile and just over a half-mile wide.
Due to the proximity of its orbit to Earth [Map] and its estimated size, this object has been classified as a “Potentially Hazardous Asteroid” (PHA) by the Minor Planet Center in Cambridge, Massachusetts. There are currently 783 PHAs."
Here's a Java applet of the asteroid's obit to explore/manipulate. Try the different tools when it loads. Zoom in on the Earth and asteroid...
http://neo.jpl.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/db_shm?des=2004+XP14
These 'within a hair's breadth' asteroids crossings occur from time to time with some media fanfare. Being as close as the moon's orbit is damn close. Some asteroids in the recent past have passed through inside the moon's orbit. I'd call that goddamn too close for comfort.
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"We are all connected; to each other biologically, to the earth chemically, to the rest of the universe atomically."
"So you're made of detritus [from exploded stars]. Get over it. Or better yet, celebrate it. After all, what nobler thought can one cherish than that the universe lives within us all?"
-Neil DeGrasse Tyson |
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Chippewa
SFN Regular
USA
1496 Posts |
Posted - 07/04/2006 : 01:57:58 [Permalink]
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quote:
Originally posted by Randy
...Some asteroids in the recent past have passed through inside the moon's orbit. I'd call that goddamn too close for comfort.
Japanese TV animation of a "meteor" (more like an asteroid) hitting the Earth causing mass extinction. Really creepy. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QlYmO4S_Dkk
The asteroid before striking looks like it has lava oozing out of it which seems highly unlikely, but its still a spooky movie.
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Diversity, independence, innovation and imagination are progressive concepts ultimately alien to the conservative mind.
"TAX AND SPEND" IS GOOD! (TAX: Wealthy corporations who won't go poor even after taxes. SPEND: On public works programs, education, the environment, improvements.) |
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HalfMooner
Dingaling
Philippines
15831 Posts |
Posted - 07/04/2006 : 03:25:58 [Permalink]
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quote:
Originally posted by Chippewa
quote:
Originally posted by Randy
...Some asteroids in the recent past have passed through inside the moon's orbit. I'd call that goddamn too close for comfort.
Japanese TV animation of a "meteor" (more like an asteroid) hitting the Earth causing mass extinction. Really creepy. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QlYmO4S_Dkk
The asteroid before striking looks like it has lava oozing out of it which seems highly unlikely, but its still a spooky movie.
Scary stuff! I'd seen that same animation, with English narration, as part of a series (I forget its name, "Life on Earth"?) on the Discovery Channel. The really strange part is, this sort of incinerating disaster has probably happened before to the early earth, and yet life survived, deep in the earth's crust itself, and even within tiny pockets in rock salt crystals.
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“Biology is just physics that has begun to smell bad.” —HalfMooner
Here's a link to Moonscape News, and one to its Archive. |
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Dr. Mabuse
Septic Fiend
Sweden
9688 Posts |
Posted - 07/04/2006 : 11:03:25 [Permalink]
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I just saw the animation...
That was some fucking big asteroid. It looked to me as this thing was in the size range of 1% to 10% of the moon. There are only a few asteroids of that size, and those are in the asteroid belt as far as I know. While there are quite a number of global killers out there, being hit by one this size should be a blessing: at least the end will come swift. |
Dr. Mabuse - "When the going gets tough, the tough get Duct-tape..."
Dr. Mabuse whisper.mp3
"Equivocation is not just a job, for a creationist it's a way of life..." Dr. Mabuse
Support American Troops in Iraq:
Send them unarmed civilians for target practice..
Collateralmurder. |
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beskeptigal
SFN Die Hard
USA
3834 Posts |
Posted - 07/04/2006 : 12:44:11 [Permalink]
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quote:
Originally posted by HalfMooner
quote:
Originally posted by beskeptigal
Just off The Onion wire service no doubt.
No, directly cut-and-pasted from the article you linked to. Honest. No joke.
I was being sarcastic, silly boy. |
| Edited by - beskeptigal on 07/04/2006 12:44:45 |
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beskeptigal
SFN Die Hard
USA
3834 Posts |
Posted - 07/04/2006 : 13:09:53 [Permalink]
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quote:
Originally posted by Ricky
I think you're over reacting. First of all, the article has in it the actual distance in it. So no matter how the data is described, it's actually there for the reader.
And I would call that close. It's only 0.00289% of an AU. And for such a large asteroid, it is a rare event, and it is close when compared to other large asteroids of its size.
Furthermore, the article has in it, "...scientists were able to reassure the public that there was never any great risk...", followed by what I think is a very unfortunate typo, as HalfMooner pointed out.
You don't frequent the Bad Astronomy sites I take it? The point is the public thinks these things really are going to strike the Earth and these kind of headlines encourage that stupidity. This object was NEVER considered a close call by any reputable astronomer.
Potential future imacts from known NEOs
There are only two objects listed that have a risk >0. They have a risk of 1 on a scale of 1-10 with 10 being the greatest risk of impact. The risk of even a 1 is in the year 2036 at the soonest. The big problem is of course, NEOs we haven't yet detected.
Object 2006 MB14 came almost as close just a week ago. In 2029 object 99942 Apophis will miss the Earth by 0.10 lunar distances. It is going to be affected by Earth's gravity and it could hit us the next time around.
Save the date, 2029-Apr-13 21:46 ± < 00:01, and keep your binoculars ready. You won't want a telescope for the flyby, just before and after, unless you are one of those experts that can track a fast moving object with your scope.
Asteriod 1950 DA might hit the Earth in 2880.
Here's a fun list. |
| Edited by - beskeptigal on 07/04/2006 13:11:35 |
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