(ORDO NEWS) — For just the seventh time, astronomers spotted an asteroid in space hours before it hit Earth in flames.
In images taken at 20:18:07 UTC on February 12, Asteroid 2023 CX1, also known as Sar2667, was spotted by astronomer Christian Sarnecki from the Piskestetö Station of the Konkoli Observatory in Hungary.
At first, there was “nothing special” about it, Sarnetsky noted on Twitter, just an ordinary object in near-Earth space.
But then the telescope spotted the asteroid a second time, and the discovery was reported by the Minor Planet Center of the International Astronomical Union.
Based on these and other follow-up observations, scientists were able to calculate the trajectory of 2023 CX1.
Their results showed a 100 percent chance of a collision, down to the approximate time of its arrival and even the location on the globe where the asteroid by then a meteor, an object that had entered the Earth’s atmosphere would hit.
They estimated the impact time to be between 02:50 and 03:03 UTC over the English Channel separating France and Britain.
And of course, at 02:59 UTC 2023, CX1 turned into a spectacular fireball illuminating the sky as it exploded into a glowing pile of falling debris.
Any of these smaller stones that may have fallen on land are likely to be found on the coast of France, north of the city of Rouen.
There are a number of reasons why this finding is so surprising. At approximately 1.1 meters (3.3 feet) across, 2023 CX1 is one of the smallest impactors found before reentry.
And while only seven such detections have ever been made, 2023 CX1 is the third in the past 12 months. This means that we are getting much better at spotting potential meteorites long before they hit.
The other six asteroids that were discovered before re-entry and whose names reflect the years of their discovery were 2008 TC3, which was about 4 meters across; 2014 AA, diameter 3 meters; 2018 LA, also three meters across; 2019 MO with a diameter of 6 meters; 2022 EB5, about 2 meters in diameter, was detected 2.5 hours before the impact and was also discovered by Sarnecki; and 2022 WJ1, only 1 meter in diameter, discovered 4 hours before impact.
In fact, there are many rocks in the path that could take them to outer space close to Earth as they orbit the Sun.
They are called near-Earth asteroids, and at the time of writing, astronomers have discovered and cataloged 31,291 of them.
Most of them are rather small and unlikely to pose a danger; like 2023 CX1, they burn up like fireballs as they fall into the atmosphere, shattering and raining down into much smaller debris.
Astronomers are confident that they know almost all near-Earth objects. asteroids that can cause serious damage.
None of these, known as potentially hazardous asteroids, will come close enough to Earth in the next century to cause concern.
There is always the possibility that we have missed a hidden gem or two, or that new threats may be thrown astray, so it makes sense to sharpen our potential striker detection skills.
In addition, the availability of early warnings for meteor fireballs means that more people will be able to watch these spectacular events.
Scientists may also be better prepared for more detailed observations as fireballs streak across the sky and crash to the ground. dust.
It is not known exactly how these stones burn and fall apart; More information about this process will not only help us better understand asteroids and meteors, but will also help us assess risks for other approaching space rocks.
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