Today an asteroid hit Earth, it was discovered only 3 hours ago

Yesterday, January 20, the Hungarian astronomer Christian Sarnitsky Discover a New asteroid: The observation took place at the Piszkéstető station of the Konkoli Observatory in the Matra Mountains, Hungary. Three hours later, the space rock collided with the Earth and crashed into the Earth's sky Berlinat 01:33 am today, January 21. It is believed that the space rock, which is one meter wide, It is officially named 2024 BX1It was completely destroyed upon entering the atmosphere.

2024 BX 1 isThe eighth asteroid It was discovered before impact with Earth, and is Szarnieczky's third discovery of an asteroid that has impacted our planet. 2024 BX 1 was a near-Earth asteroid in an Apollo-type orbit.

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#asteroid 2024 BX1 was first discovered by @sarneczky At Piszkéstető station in Hungary about 3 hours before it burned up over Germany. Soon after, multiple observatories in Europe contributed more than 180 observations of this asteroid. pic.twitter.com/Gf4THC1Lkw

– Tony Dunne (@tony873004) January 21, 2024

Italian astronomer Luca Buzzi was also able to photograph the space rock shortly before it collided with us: here is the picture.

What is an asteroid?

And asteroid It is a small rocky or metallic celestial body that orbits around the Sun, located mainly in the asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter. The size of these objects ranges from a few meters to hundreds of kilometers in diameter. “Near-Earth” asteroids are those whose perihelion (closest point to the Sun) reaches a distance of up to 1.3 AU from Earth. These asteroids likely have orbits that bring them closer to our planet, sparking scientific interest and, in some cases, Concern about potential effects.

“asteroids”Apollo“They are a specific class of near-Earth asteroids with orbits characterized by a large eccentricity, which causes them to cross the Earth’s orbit. These asteroids are closely monitored because they pose a potential risk of impacting Earth. However, most of them are well studied, and the chances of collision exist.” Bass.

Scientists devote significant resources to studying and monitoring near-Earth asteroids and the Apollo asteroids to better understand their nature and orbital paths, and to develop strategies to mitigate any future threats of cosmic impact on Earth.