Asteroid passing Earth on Friday

[Ronin13]

I follow a lot of the stuff the NASA's JPL publishes and creates about neat, cool, space related science stuff... and this one is a bricks to be shat one here:

It's the asteroid 2012 DA14, 50M in diameter and weighing in at an estimated 180,000 tons (basically a very bad day for anyone near where it hits)... it's going to pass Earth by a mere 17,200 miles. For reference, the moon is 238,900mi away, one 14th the distance, and closer than GeoSync satellites . NASA has stated that the asteroid has no risk of hitting Earth, and on a return trip (laws of gravity) a .002% chance of hitting in 2080 and 2109 (our future relatives are safe from this rock).
More info here.

[Kraven251]

can't say it would break my heart if it said hello to Pyongyang or Tehran

[Ronin13]

can't say it would break my heart if it said hello to Pyongyang or Tehran

JPL has said due to its size, in the unlikely event that it did hit Earth it would be a "city killer"- lay terms used for the size of the airburst/impact (2.9MT-3.5MT) damage. Iran or NK, or even an impact with Pakistan wouldn't be much cause for me to shed any tears.

[Gman]

That baby is going to get quite the kicker from Earth's gravity. Won't have to worry about that one being anywhere near its current orbit if/when it comes back.

[Shootersfab]

I know of a few old girlfriends houses that i would not mind it taking out

[BushMasterBoy]

Eventually one of these asteroids is gonna hit the earth and do some serious damage. Average velocity is something like 15,000 miles per hour. Once you do the math concerning the mass of the asteroid and it's velocity, it doesn't take a really large one to equate to the destructive force greater than all the worlds nuclear weapons! You would need a starship to stop an incoming large asteroid....anybody know where the .gov has it stashed?

[DeusExMachina]

Eventually one of these asteroids is gonna hit the earth and do some serious damage. Average velocity is something like 15,000 miles per hour. Once you do the math concerning the mass of the asteroid and it's velocity, it doesn't take a really large one to equate to the destructive force greater than all the worlds nuclear weapons! You would need a starship to stop an incoming large asteroid....anybody know where the .gov has it stashed?

Probably under the budget papers that gutted NASA.

[Rucker61]

Hear about this idiot?

http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2013...lobal-warming/

[Irving]

Hear about this idiot?

http://www.theblaze.com/stories/2013...lobal-warming/

Ho-lee shit!

[Zundfolge]

This story reminds me ... I used to have the biggest crush on Catherine Mary Stewart.



It was the 80s ... I was young ... I make no apologies.