Car-sized asteroid just made the closest fly-by of Earth on record

a reply to: charlyv

There is another one of those out there. Somewhere.
Not as many as there used to be.
And the big ones are much easier to spot.

Also, you live in Hawaii , and it is the home of ATLAS, the Early Warning Asteroid Detection system on 2 of your islands....

ATLAS

Cool places to visit!!!!!

a reply to: charlyv

Years ago I applied for a tech position on Haleakala (different observatory though). I was turned down because I was honest and said that I had used marijuana in conjunction with my cancer treatments.

I learned my lesson.

originally posted by: Phage
a reply to: charlyv

Years ago I applied for a tech position on Haleakala (different observatory though). I was turned down because I was honest and said that I had used marijuana in conjunction with my cancer treatments.

I learned my lesson.

Certainly hope you beat it.
Is it legal there now, like here in MA?
Bad timing if so!

The world still has a lot of growing up to do.

a reply to: Phage

never ever talk about that to a job even when it'S legal !!! i had one to sorry for you ! hope it's over like mine !

back ontopic wow that was really close funny thing the rock was spot only in 2020 !

a reply to: charlyv

I like to think my team and I beat it, yes. 33 years since my last chemo round and nothing since.

No, it was not legal in any way, shape, or form. And honestly, it didn't help much. Your results may vary.

It would have been a low paying but really cool job. I could have launched after work and flown home. All downhill from 10,000 feet.

It was the AMOS observatory. They were cutting edge in the 80s, doing Air Force work. That was the problem, methinks. The HR lady was very nice.

originally posted by: Baddogma
a reply to: Vector99

Although I love the sentiment, that meme bugs me 'cause a meteor burns up in the atmosphere ...

a meteorITE hits the ground.

Well actually, meteor is the term for a meteoroid that enters our atmosphere and starts burning up, it becomes a meteorite if there are any remnants that didn't vaporize away upon entry and make it all the way to earth.

Even more disappointing, a "giant meteor" is a misnomer, because 'giant meteors' are actually asteroids, not meteoroids.

Maybe we should just agree on 'Giant Comet 2020'

a reply to: Vector99

A small one would be quite sufficient.

a reply to: Phage

Yeah, I know a relatively small one could do some major localized obliteration, but for world ending we need a comet or an asteroid, just saying.

a reply to: Vector99

Maybe we should just agree on 'Giant Comet 2020'

A small comet would serve quite well.
Them suckers are fast and pack a wallop.

originally posted by: Phage
a reply to: Vector99

Maybe we should just agree on 'Giant Comet 2020'

A small comet would serve quite well.
Them suckers are fast and pack a wallop.

Yup

Each one of those impacts is nearly the size of or larger than earth itself, full speed direct hits make a big boom. Wasn't a very big comet either, especially after it broke into 21 pieces.

a reply to: Vector99

That was sort of a special case, actually. The main body had circled Jupiter a few times before tidal forces caused it to crumble and form that string of pearls. We wouldn't have that benefit. If a comet has our name on it, it will be inbound and hit at full throttle.

a reply to: Phage

Yeah Jupiter is pretty cool like that. Although it also could happen that a comet like that gets close enough to become fragmented and also set on a trajectory towards us here on earth instead of in orbit of the big gassy guy in the solar system.

My advice? Don't piss off Jupiter.

a reply to: Vector99

I sacrifice every virgin I can find.
Metaphorically speaking.

originally posted by: Phage
a reply to: Vasa Croe

What do asteroid impacts have to do with a magnetic pole shift?

IMO, a large mass or masses entering our solar system could have an effect on the magnetic field of Earth.

a reply to: LookingAtMars

Why?

a reply to: ArMaP

There is no doubt in my mind that gravity and magnetism are linked somehow. Many great minds have looked for the connection. Gravity does have effects on magnetic fields.

I know the link doesn't prove this and no way I can do that math

Gravitational-magnetic-electric field interaction

The equations show that the variation of the gravitational field could be measured. And, we found that, the energy density of the magnetic field is close to that of the gravitational one. It also indicates that a strong magnetic field could make the variation of the energy of gravitational field measurable. The equations should mean that not only we have a new way to understand gravity, but also we shall can manipulate the gravitational field as we did the electromagnetic one.

a reply to: LookingAtMars

Today we have very sensitive devices that are capable of detecting very small changes in the Earth's magnetic field, and, as far as I know, they haven't noticed a thing when the Moon changes position around the Earth in its orbit, which, according to that idea, should happen.

a reply to: ArMaP

It is pretty clear that gravity has an effect on the Earth's core. As you know the Earth's core produces our field.

This is also one more reason that the Earth would be a very different place without our moon.

To maintain this magnetic field until the present day, the classical model required the Earth's core to have cooled by around 3 000 °C over the past 4.3 billion years. Now, astronomers suggest that, on the contrary, its temperature has fallen by only 300 °C. The action of the Moon, overlooked until now, is thought to have compensated for this difference and kept the geodynamo active.

The Moon may play a major role in maintaining Earth's magnetic field

a reply to: LookingAtMars

What I meant was that, besides that expected effect, shouldn't we notice another effect, from that supposed effect gravity has on magnetism?