[meteorite-list] Small Asteroid to Light Up Sky Over Africa (2008 TC3)

From: Ron Baalke <baalke_at_meteoritecentral.com>
Date: Mon, 6 Oct 2008 17:58:02 -0700 (PDT)
Message-ID: <200810070058.RAA11400_at_zagami.jpl.nasa.gov>

Oct. 06, 2008

Dwayne Brown
Headquarters, Washington
202-358-1726
dwayne.c.brown at nasa.gov

Veronica McGregor
Jet Propulsion Laboratory
818-354-9452
veronica.c.mcgregor at jpl.nasa.gov
RELEASE: 08-254

SMALL ASTEROID TO LIGHT UP SKY OVER AFRICA

WASHINGTON -- An asteroid measuring several feet in diameter is
expected to enter the atmosphere over northern Sudan before dawn
Tuesday, setting off a potentially brilliant natural fireworks
display.

It is unlikely any sizable fragments will survive the fiery passage
through Earth's atmosphere. The event is expected to occur at 5:46
a.m. local time (10:46 p.m. EDT Monday).

"We estimate objects this size enter Earth's atmosphere once every few
months," said Don Yeomans of the Near-Earth Object Office at NASA's
Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif. "The unique aspect of
this event is that it is the first time we have observed an impacting
object during its final approach."

The small space rock, designated 2008 TC3, will be traveling on an
eastward trajectory that will carry it toward the Red Sea.

"Observers in the region could be in for quite a show," Yeomans said.
"When the object enters the atmosphere, it could become an extremely
bright fireball."

The small space rock first was observed by the Mount Lemon telescope
of the NASA-funded Catalina Sky Survey early Monday. NASA detects and
tracks asteroids and comets passing close to Earth. The Near Earth
Object Observation Program, commonly called "Spaceguard," plots the
orbits of these objects to determine if any could be potentially
hazardous to our planet.

For more information, visit:

http://neo.jpl.nasa.gov/

        
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Received on Mon 06 Oct 2008 08:58:02 PM PDT