Reuzenasteroïde Florence passeert aarde op vrijdag
Ruimte en Astronomie
Reuzenasteroïde Florence passeert aarde op vrijdag
Reuzenasteroïde Florence passeert aarde op vrijdag
Foto: AFP
Een gigantisch brok steen passeert vrijdag de aarde. Het gaat om asteroïde Florence die een doorsnee heeft van 4,4 kilometer. Florence vliegt op een afstand van 7 miljoen kilometer van de aarde. Volgens ruimtevaartorganisatie NASA is het de grootste asteroïde die op zo'n betrekkelijk korte afstand langs de aarde vliegt.
Er komen wel vaker asteroïden in de buurt van onze planeet, maar Florence is groter dan de andere asteroïden. De asteroïde is in 1981 ontdekt en is vernoemd naar de beroemde Engelse verpleegkundige Florence Nightingale.
Door: ANP
Bron: http://www.nu.nl/wetenschap/4902590/reuzenasteroide-florence-passeert-aarde-vrijdag.html
LARGE ASTEROID FLIES BY EARTH:
Today, asteroid 3122 Florence is flying past Earth 4.4 million miles away. Measuring about 3 miles across, Florence is the largest asteroid to pass this close to our planet since the first near-Earth asteroid was discovered over a century ago. Astronomer Alberto Quijano Vodniza of Pasto, Narino, Colombia, photographed the space rock gliding through the constellation Aquarius on Sept. 1st:
"It was about as bright as a [9th magnitude star]," he says. "I was able to capture it easily using 5 second exposures through my 14-inch Celestron telescope."
Asteroid Florence was discovered in 1981 and named in honor of Florence Nightingale (1820-1910), the founder of modern nursing. Tracking observations of asteroid Florence span nearly 40 years, and its orbit is well known.There is no chance this asteroid will collide with Earth for many centuries to come.
NASA's Goldstone Solar System Radar in California and the National Science Foundation's giant planetary radar at the Arecibo Observatory in Puerto Rico will both be pinging the asteroid as it passes by. The resulting radar images could reveal surface details as small as 10 meters.
Bron: http://www.spaceweather.com/
Today, asteroid 3122 Florence is flying past Earth 4.4 million miles away. Measuring about 3 miles across, Florence is the largest asteroid to pass this close to our planet since the first near-Earth asteroid was discovered over a century ago. Astronomer Alberto Quijano Vodniza of Pasto, Narino, Colombia, photographed the space rock gliding through the constellation Aquarius on Sept. 1st:
"It was about as bright as a [9th magnitude star]," he says. "I was able to capture it easily using 5 second exposures through my 14-inch Celestron telescope."
Asteroid Florence was discovered in 1981 and named in honor of Florence Nightingale (1820-1910), the founder of modern nursing. Tracking observations of asteroid Florence span nearly 40 years, and its orbit is well known.There is no chance this asteroid will collide with Earth for many centuries to come.
NASA's Goldstone Solar System Radar in California and the National Science Foundation's giant planetary radar at the Arecibo Observatory in Puerto Rico will both be pinging the asteroid as it passes by. The resulting radar images could reveal surface details as small as 10 meters.
Bron: http://www.spaceweather.com/
