World News - A number of amateur astronomers from around the world have discovered an asteroid that is expected to pass near the Earth on Monday night, April 18, 2011. Currently, the asteroid 2011 GP59 was located at a distance 10 times compared to the distance of Earth to the moon.
Asteroid sightings flickering makes the interested observer. Apparently, it is known that the cigar-shaped asteroid is rotating from end to end quickly.
"Generally, if there are asteroids such force, means the object is elongated, and we see the narrowness of its length and then the side as he spins," said Don Yeomans, Manager of Near-Earth Object Program Office, NASA, as quoted by News.com, 15 April 2011.
GP59, says Yeomans, an estimated length of 50 meters and the rotation period to reach about 7.5 minutes. "This makes the brightness of the object was changed every 4 minutes," he said.
However, the Yeoman of the agency in charge of tracking the characteristics of asteroids, and comets protect mankind from the blow of these things mentioned, we need not worry.
"Although the new find, the orbital location of the asteroid 2011 GP59 can be determined," he said. "There's no chance this space rock enters Earth's atmosphere when it passed in the near future, or in the future," he said.
This, said Yeoiman, is certainly good news. Because, although the size of 50 feet sounds small, but the size was 5 times larger than the asteroid that exploded 15 kilometers above Indonesia, in October 2009.
For information, when the asteroid that exploded, he issued the same energy with the power of three atomic bomb explosion. That is, this time the asteroid was found to have 15 times the explosive power of atomic bombs if it arrives at the Earth's atmosphere.
Fortunately, if the asteroid that exploded over Indonesia escape the observation of astronomers, at least the asteroid that will approach this time is unknown.
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