Most of the asteroids that collided with Earth were discovered following years and even millions of years. But for the fifth time in history, astronomers have observed an asteroid approaching the Earth’s atmosphere.
Hungarian astronomer Kristian Sarnitsky announced on March 11, 2022, that while observing the sky from the Peskesteto station (part of the Konkoli Observatory) located near Budapest, he discovered a small asteroid, which the Minor Planet Center called 2022 EB5, hours before it entered the Earth’s atmosphere and combustion.
After this discovery, the observation became interesting, because following 30 minutes, it turned out that following two hours the asteroid will penetrate the Earth’s atmosphere. Indeed, the asteroid penetrated the Earth’s atmosphere north of Iceland at 22.22 GMT on Friday, March 11, 2022 and burned completely, and its speed was 66,600 kilometers per hour. According to earthsky.org.
According to amateur astronomer and orbital modeling expert Tony Dunn, discovering a small celestial body before it penetrates the Earth’s atmosphere is very rare.
It is reported that astronomers had previously observed four asteroids before they entered the Earth’s atmosphere, namely 2014 AA, 2018 LA, 2008 TV2 and 2019 MO.
Data from the International Network of Ultrasound Detectors confirmed the asteroid’s penetration into the Earth’s atmosphere. According to a statement issued by the European Space Agency, signs of the asteroid entering the atmosphere were detected using these detectors in Iceland and Greenland.
