A huge asteroid flew between the Earth and the Moon, but it was noticed only two days later
Miscellaneous / / July 20, 2023
He followed the same path as the one from which the Chelyabinsk meteorite broke off.
Last Thursday, July 13, an asteroid the size of a 20-story building flew between the Earth and the Moon. At the same time, astronomers noticed him in just two days.
NASA retroactively named this object 2023NT1. The agency noted that its width is approximately 60 meters, so it did not pose a threat to humanity. Near our planet, the asteroid was moving at a speed of 86,000 km/h.
The object flew towards the Earth from the side of the Sun and the radiance of the star blinded the telescopes, so it was not noticed in time. Spotted only on Saturday, July 15, when he flew past safely.
The sun is still a major hindrance in the detection of near-Earth objects, astronomers say. Sometimes this leads to incidents with serious consequences. As, for example, in 2013 in Chelyabinsk. Then an 18-meter fragment of the asteroid, which followed the same path through the sun's glare and also went unnoticed, exploded right in the sky above the city.
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