On January 26/27 , the asteroid 2004 BL86 will swing past the Earth at a distance of 1.2 million kilometer , three time the distance of the synodic month . Closer asteroid glide path are rough-cut , but this one is gaining attention because of the size and cleverness of the object involved .
The web site Lunar Meteorite Hunters list 41 close asteroid approach in January alone . However , some are as small as 24 m across . The larger representatives , such as the 1.1 kilometre 2062 Aten , will slide by at least ten lunar distances ( LD ) aside ; 73 in Aten ’s case .
What makes 2004 BL86 ( also known as 357439 ) place upright out is the combination of closeness and size . With a distance somewhere between 400 and 900 metre , its passage at 3.1LD will be the closest approach of anything this size until 2027 , unless an undetected object is expect to give us a panic .
Such a surprise is reasonably unlikely . The Jet Propulsion Laboratory believe they have found 90 % of the objectsthis size or largerthat frequently come into Earth ’s locality . The appearance of a long period comet from the outer solar organisation can not be reign out , but close approachesdon’t come along all that often .
An asteroid of that size at such a close coming will make 2004 BL86 relatively bright . Not lustrous enough to see with the naked center , unfortunately , but at magnitude 8.8 even the smallest home scope should beak it up under dark sky , as will many field glasses .
Peak brightness will occur around 4 am Greenwich Mean Time , at which point in time it will be seeable over Europe , Africa and most of the Americas . Eastern Asia and Australia will get a prospect to see the asteroid several hours earlier at tight approach . Being in a less favorable place for reflecting sunlight , it will be arounda magnitude fainterat this clip .
At its closest approach , 2004 BL86 will be moving around 4 ° an hour , buy the farm throughHydra , Cancer and Leo in the class of the night . material metre images and commentary will be useable atThe Virtual Telescope .
Undeterred bycenturiesoffailure , doomsdayers are acquire this as a sign of theforthcoming apocalypse . In fact , 2004 BL86 ’s orbit has been map accurately enough to be entirely confident it will pass at a safe length both this time and for millennia to come .
If it did tally , however , it would do plenty of impairment . While certainly not in the dinosaur - grampus class , 2004 BL86 is big enough to create a crater perhaps 10 km across . At least at the large end of sizing estimates , its effects would be feel worldwide , with spherical firestorms , acid rain and an impact winter , possibly follow by a longer menstruation of enhanced Greenhouse Effect . In the likely event of an ocean landing , the tsunamis generated would be devastatingeven G of klick forth .
If it ’s mirky in your surface area , you could also watch the asteroid pass us by live onSlooh’slive webcast . you could watch it powerful here :
