The currently known asteroid count is 1,113,527, as per the official website of NASA. Asteroids are the heavy and rocky remnants left over from the early formation of our solar system about 4.6 billion years ago that is regarded as potentially hazardous objects. Every year on 30 June, International Asteroid Day is marked to promote public awareness about the risk of the asteroid impact. The United Nations occasion tells people about the importance of asteroids and their role in the formation of our solar system. This year it falls on Thursday. The data stated by NASA says that about once a year, an automobile-sized asteroid hits Earth’s atmosphere, creates a stunning fireball and burns up before reaching the surface. History, Interesting Facts and Significance of the Global Event Celebrated on June 30.
Furthermore, once in a million years, there is a probability of a large object that can threaten Earth’s civilization. The enormous craters are the evidence of these dangerous occurrences. Let’s learn about the five incidents when our planet was on the verge of getting hit by an asteroid and a few instances when we experienced an Armageddon event! From ‘What is Asteroid’ to ‘What Happens if Asteroid Hits Earth’, FAQs About Space Rocks Answered.
1. 2004 FU 162
The aten near-Earth asteroid, FU 162, which measured almost 4 to 12 meters in diameter, skipped the destruction of Earth from 8,000 miles away. It was only observed for 44 minutes on 31 March 2004.
2. Vredefort Crater, South Africa
The most giant verified impact crater on Earth, Vredefort, is the remnant of the biggest asteroid to hit the planet. The asteroid was estimated to be 10-15 km in diameter, which made the 2.023 billion-year-old crater.
3. 2011 CQ1
Discovered on 4 February 2011 by Richard A. Kowalski, the asteroid was at the closest distance to hit Earth. CQ1 got about 7,300 miles from Earth.
4. Fireball Over Japan
In 2006, citizens noticed a dazzling fireball over Japan that was 100 kilograms in mass. It has every possible chance to hurt Earth’s objects, but luckily it managed to pierce through into the lower atmosphere and hit the planet.
5. Sudbury Basin, Canada
The object responsible for creating Sudbury Basin crashed into Earth about 1.8 billion years ago, which was 9-14 Kms in diameter.
Along with these events, the most critical fireball event in over 100 years occurred in Russia in 2013. The green planet got hit by an asteroid the size of a small building, and that one disintegrated about 20 kilometres above the city of Chelyabinsk!
(The above story first appeared on Morning Tidings on Jun 30, 2022 08:21 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website morningtidings.com).
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