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2012 TC4 will pass Earth well within the Moon's orbit a month from now, but not nearly as close as previously estimated:
Mark your calendar for Oct. 12. That's when asteroid 2012 TC4 will slip past Earth at an expected distance of around 27,300 miles (44,000 kilometers). The European Southern Observatory's Very Large Telescope in Chile recently caught sight of the asteroid, which could be up to 100 feet (30 meters) in size.
NASA is leading a coordinated international campaign to observe TC4. In July, NASA suggested the asteroid could squeeze in as close as 4,200 miles (6,800 kilometers), but the European Space Agency's latest estimates give us more breathing room.
Geostationary equatorial orbit (GEO) is at about 35,786 km above mean sea level.
Also at Phys.org (AFP).
(Score: 2) by kaszz on Saturday August 12 2017, @07:03PM (2 children)
City killer size, though the speed at 14 000 m/s is high to the usual 4000 m/s. So if it hits it would wipe out a megacity. And at the distance of 44 000 km. I'll guess it won't get caught in the gravity field.
It is however a good reminder that our luck may run out.
(Score: 2) by takyon on Saturday August 12 2017, @08:07PM (1 child)
Asteroids of this size and high velocity can cause air bursts, although the angle of entry is a factor. This could be the same size as the Chelyabinsk meteor [wikipedia.org], which caused nearly 1,500 injuries but no deaths. That meteor traveled at 19,160 m/s.
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(Score: 2) by kaszz on Saturday August 12 2017, @09:26PM
Chelyabinsk were lucky as they were not directly hit.