Fire in the Sky

"Newly Discovered" Double Asteroid Flyby Today

Space Weather
Wed, 06 Apr 2011 10:44 UTC

It's notable when an asteroid flies past Earth closer than the Moon. Today, April 6th, two asteroids will do this. Newly-discovered space rocks 2011 GW9 and 2011 GP28 will zip through the Earth-Moon system at Earth-distances of 77,000 km and 192,000 km, respectively.

Both are ten-meter class asteroids two to three times smaller than the Tunguska impactor of 1908. There is no danger of a collision.

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Reader Comments

Woodsman · 2011-04-07T01:32:52Z

What?

No reassurance that this is a once-in-a-million-years event?

Jeez.

Instead, the major news networks simply aren't bothering to carry this item. Rocks from space passing within the moon's orbit are evidently too common for broadcast journalism.

Appollynon · 2011-04-07T14:08:43Z

Double flyby, double earthquake?

I can't help but wonder if the double flyby of asteriods yesterday is the cause of these two large earthquakes in Mexico and Japan today due to the EM discharge channel set up and action at a distance...did anyone else think this timing was more than coincidence?