2012 TC4 asteroid does not collide with the Earth

2012 TC4 asteroid will cross Earth at a very close distance in mid-October.

The 2012 TC4 asteroid will fly over the Earth at a distance of 43,935km, which is one-eighth of the distance from Earth to the Moon (384,400km) on October 12, according to the European Space Agency (ESA). This distance is just enough for asteroids not to hit the orbiting satellites 35,406km above Earth, Sun reported yesterday.

Graphic of the asteroid's 2012 flight path TC4.(Video: YouTube).

"We are sure this object is not capable of crashing into the Earth. There is no danger at all," AFP quoted Detlef Koschny, a researcher at ESA.

2012 Asteroid TC4 first flew through the Earth in October 2012. It is about 15-30m long and moves at 15km / sec.

Earlier, scientists predicted that asteroids would approach Earth later this year but were not sure how close it would be. The Very Large Telescope telescope at the Southern European Observatory (ESO) in Chile followed 2012 TC4 and determined its route.

"It's too close," said Rolf Densing, head of the European Space Operations Center in Darmstadt, Germany. "The farthest satellites fly at an altitude of 36,000km, so this is really a flying flight."

For researchers, this flight of 2012 TC4 will be a rare opportunity to test planetary protection systems on Earth, focusing on early warning instead of actively deflecting. small planet.

2012 TC4 asteroid in a telescope photo Very Large Telescope.(Photo: ESA).

Observing the motion of 2012 TC4 "is an excellent opportunity to test the ability of the international community to detect and track objects near the Earth, as well as evaluate the ability to coordinate reactions. before the real threat from asteroids, " ESA stressed.

A 40m long, only slightly larger body than 2012 TC4, caused the largest type of collision with Earth when it exploded above Tunguska, Siberia, in 1908. In 2013, a meteor of 20m in diameter exploded on sky of Chelyabinsk city in central Russia with energy equivalent to 30 atomic bombs dropped on Hiroshima. Shock waves from the explosion broke the window glass of nearly 5,000 buildings and injured more than 1,200 people.

If the 2012 TC4 celestial body flew into the Earth's atmosphere, it would have similar consequences to the Chelyabinsk event, according to ESA.