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Close earth fly-by of asteroid 2004 MN4 on Friday the 13th - 2029

Friday the 13th is supposed to be an unlucky day. But on April 13th - Friday the 13th - 2029, millions of people are going to go outside, look up and marvel at their good luck. asteroid 2004 MN4 will be gliding across the sky, faster than many satellites, brighter than most stars.

What’s so lucky about that? The asteroid is not hitting Earth. It is about 320 meters wide. That’s big enough to punch through Earth’s atmosphere, devastating a region the size of, say, Texas, if it hit land, or causing widespread tsunamis if it hit ocean.

Asteroid 2004 MN4 had been discovered in June 2004.

Asteroid 2004 MN4 will fly past Earth only 18,600 miles (30,000 km) above the ground. For comparison, geosynchronous satellites orbit at 22,300 miles (36,000 km). At closest approach, the asteroid will be visible to the unaided eye from Africa, Europe and Asia. Close approaches by objects as large as 2004 MN4 are currently thought to occur at 1000-year intervals, on average.

posted by: kyawoo at 11:13 | link | comments (1) |
asteroids

Comments:

#1  22 May 2005 - 11:22

 

Let's just hope that nothing changes its path over the next twenty-four years. It's already a little too close for comfort.

Aheadau

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