True, the distance is quite large, so it could not collide with the Earth. On the other hand, for the scientific world and astronomy enthusiasts, it is quite close. La Nasa even clarified that it was the asteroid that had come closest to Earth. He is the only one in this case to be known. This is probably a real fear for scientists. They are afraid that one day the scenarios in the films will materialize.
This illustration shows asteroid 2020 QG’s trajectory bending during its close approach to Earth. The asteroid is the closest known non-impacting asteroid ever detected. The asteroid passed by 2,945 km above the southern Indian Ocean on Sunday, Aug. 16 at 12:08 a.m.
© @NASAJPL pic.twitter.com/y2sONkAHLW
— Jenna ???? (@JennaH_Explorer) August 19, 2020
2020 HQ gave the Earth a cold sweat
Usually the distances are much greater, as some asteroids are close to 10,000 km for example. 2020 HQ was therefore quite close, but all scenarios were considered. It grazed our planet last Sunday, it is now far away and the situation can be studied with a little more serenity.
A (small) asteroid (again) grazed Earth on Sunday
3 to 6 meters long passed 2,950 km from Earth on Sunday, according to NASA the closest asteroid to have ever been observed passing near our planet.
christened 2020 HQ, probably wouldn’t have done any damage pic.twitter.com/oiL1bwkyo0— Farid Benamer-B (@faridbbf) August 19, 2020
- If the asteroid had finished its course on Earth, would the damage have been colossal?
- The Jet Propulsion Laboratory shared some data, specifying that the asteroid would not have been devastating for our planet.
- On the other hand, it would have tended to disintegrate, this would then have caused a ball of fire which would have attracted many looks.
- The asteroid was the subject of a press release from NASA because the American agency is monitoring anything that can approach Earth from near or far.
We must not forget that a catastrophic situation resulted in the loss of dinosaurs on Earth, could such a context happen again? We are ultimately not immune to a disaster occurring, but we hope on the other hand that technologies exist so that the most threatening asteroids are detected as quickly as possible. As for 2020 HQ, it was at Earth level at 4:08 a.m. GMT last Sunday, passing over the southern Indian Ocean. The speed was 12.3 km per second and it was located exactly 2,950 km from Earth.
One of the closest asteroid approaches happened on August 16, 2020☄️
At 5:05 p.m. UTC, the car-sized asteroid 2020 QG passed above the Earth at 2950 km. For comparison, the ISS’s altitude is about 410 km. Astronomers didn’t expect the asteroid was coming until it passed by. pic.twitter.com/wORdn220k2— Star Walk (@StarWalk) August 18, 2020
When was the asteroid spotted?
If you think this asteroid was identified several days before it passed over Earth, you are wrong. Indeed, it was spotted less than 6 hours before its passage thanks to the telescope of the Palomar observatory in California. It was therefore the Zwicky Transient Facility that made it possible to know him. It should not be forgotten that penetration into the atmosphere has already been identified, in particular in 2013. L’information had been widely taken up by all the press groups around the world, because some damage had been identified. You probably remember the explosion recorded in Russia in Chelyabinsk.
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NASA must also locate the most massive asteroids, they are generally 140 meters in size. Indeed, with this dimension, they can clearly threaten the Earth. The devices are then very picky, but they can of course spot the smallest “stones”. The observation is not in vain, because the specialists specified that the Earth had curved its trajectory thanks to the gravity. As a result, 2020 QG made a 45 degree turn as it approached our planet. It was therefore not able to enter the atmosphere. If you are an enthusiast, know that there are also specific sites. They can then collect some data concerning the famous asteroids which can approach the Earth.
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