As a result of the incident, no one was injured as parts of the asteroid fell into the sea.
On February 13, 2023, at 03:00 GMT (5:00 Kyiv time), a bright “fireball” lit up the sky over the English Channel separating England and France. A small asteroid entered the atmosphere, exploded in midair, and then its fragments fell into the water. This event was observed not only by astronomers, but also by ordinary residents of several European countries, who received unique shots, Daily Mail reported.
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On Monday night, February 13, a small asteroid just 1 meter in diameter entered Earth’s atmosphere. This bright “fireball” flew at great speed, leaving an equally bright trail behind it. After a short stay in Earth’s atmosphere, it exploded in midair and broke into small pieces that fell into the waters of the English Channel.
The fall of the asteroid at that time was observed by residents of England, France, Belgium and the Netherlands. The falling asteroid is best seen from southern England and northern France.
Officially named 2023 CX1 (although it has an alternative name, Sar 2667), the asteroid was discovered by Hungarian astronomer Christian Sarnecki 7 hours before it fell to Earth. The scientist took the first photo of a near-Earth asteroid flying towards Earth on the evening of Sunday, February 12, when the object was 233,000 km from our planet.
The asteroid headed for the northern coast of France, but like other similar small objects it burned up in the atmosphere and eventually broke into small pieces as a result of the explosion.
No one was injured as a result of the incident, as all the remaining pieces fell into the English Channel, according to scientists. In any case, this asteroid was not considered potentially dangerous due to its small size.
Even if an asteroid or parts of it landed in a densely populated area of France, it could potentially damage buildings or seriously injure someone.
According to scientists from the European Space Agency, this was only the seventh time in history that it was possible to accurately predict the fall of an asteroid to Earth. Scientists believe it is very good practice to observe and predict the fall of such non-hazardous asteroids because it can actually help predict the possible fall of a large space rock.
Scientists believe that until now there was no way to protect against such a disaster. So far, there may be a way to deflect asteroids from their flight paths, as the DART spacecraft did last September. But this event occurred millions of kilometers from Earth, and scientists are not yet sure whether such a device could change the asteroid’s flight path if it was too close to the planet.
Now scientists believe that asteroids larger than 100-140 meters in diameter pose a potential danger to Earth. If such a rock fell from the sky, the collision would be equivalent to the 1,000 atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima in 1945.
And if an asteroid 1 km or more in diameter hits Earth, this catastrophe could lead to the destruction of our civilization. Meanwhile, in early March this year, a similar asteroid named 2001 CB21 should pass Earth at close range. If something changes course, then it will be the last event people will know.
Focus He has already written that scientists say whether it is possible to destroy an asteroid flying to Earth with the help of nuclear weapons.
Moreover Focus At the end of January, he wrote, a not-so-large asteroid flew dangerously close to Earth.
Source: Focus
Ashley Fitzgerald is an accomplished journalist in the field of technology. She currently works as a writer at 24 news breaker. With a deep understanding of the latest technology developments, Ashley’s writing provides readers with insightful analysis and unique perspectives on the industry.