|
Author
|
Topic: Ever See Armaggeddon?
|
Graysith
Chosen Daughter
Member # 27
|
posted 09-01-2000 09:50 PM
     
OK, so it's not a comet. BUT! a small celestial body going by the name of 2000 QW7 is interesting in its own right: today it passed less than 3,000,000 million miles from the earth.What is 2000 QW7, you ask? It is a half-kilometer wide asteroid, a little smaller than the one thought to trigger the KT dinosaur extinction, and probably originated in the belt between Jupiter and Mars. Being in an orbit that brings it this close to the earth places it in the category of Near Earth Objects, sub-heading "Potentially Hazardous Asteroids,"... along with about 266 others that we know of! 2000 QW7 is a relative newcomer to this elite group: we didn't discover it until last Saturday. But in it's near-miss trajectory (by astronomical standards) it is not alone: last month, four such NEOs came within spitting distance of us. It happens quite often, folks. Sleep tight!  ------------------
"I Ride the Stormcloud and the Night!"
Posts: 3904 | From: Indianola, Iowa | Registered: Jul 2000 | Logged: 152.163.195.196
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
UBBFriend: Email this page to someone!
posted 09-07-2000 04:22 PM
