Anyone know exactly how often the Earth see's a Asteroid or Comet? I can't remember the last time I saw a huge Asteroid or Comet fly across the sky.

Annihil88torr wrote:Anyone know exactly how often the Earth see's a Asteroid or Comet?

According to my astronomical software, there are currently 8 fairly bright comets (magnitudes 8.8 to 14.5) in the sky, but only two are visible at night; the other six are currently in the daytime sky. My 12.5" telescope could (but for the daylight!) catch any of them. On January 22, there will be 20 comets in the sky (magnitudes 5.3 to 15.6), and 18 of them will be visible at night. I may have to make a point of comet-hunting that night!

So ... comets are pretty common, though most of them (like all the above) are not naked-eye visible. You need a telescope for all but the very brightest ones.

Annihil88torr wrote:I can't remember the last time I saw a huge Asteroid or Comet fly across the sky.

Ooo, you missed a great comet last year, 17P Holmes. It had a huge outburst, and was plainly visible to the naked eye for several weeks. It was just incredible, one of the greatest cometary outbursts ever seen. Holmes unexpectedly brightened from a magnitude of about 17 to about 2.8 in a period of only 42 hours. That is, in less than two days, it got 500,000 times brighter. At its brightest, it was visible from downtown Tokyo. It was quite a show!

As for asteroids, well they're pretty common too. On that same January night, seven of the very biggest ones will be visible, but again, too faint to see with the naked eye. My observing software lists 10,000 of the bigger asteroids. Vesta is really the only one you might have a chance to see with the naked eye, and only when it is favorably positioned and you have a very dark sky, as in a remote location.

Meanwhile, get ready for 2029. The asteroid named Apophis will pass about 22,600 miles from Earth, closer than geosynchronous satellites. if you're in Europe, Africa, or western Asia, it will reach magnitude 3.8. So you'll get to watch it. You'll see a moderately bright star move across the sky at what will appear to be a stately pace. At no more than 600 meters, it's no planet-killer, but a collision would be nasty anyway. Not to worry, the orbit is clearly not a collision course. And while it could pass through a 600-meter wide "keyhole" that would set up a 2037 collision, the current odds are 1/45,000 against it.

So, no, excepting Vesta (when everything is just right) and Apophis (in 21 years), you won't see any asteroids with the naked eye.

Finally, however, you do have a decent chance of seeing a bolide, or "fireball". I saw this one as a kid (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SwWc_eCkSyw) and just a few weeks ago, folks in western Canada saw this one (http://fireball.meteorite.free.fr/2008_11_20/Video/video_edmonton.html). The first was probably about the size of a Volkswagen when it hit the atmosphere, and the second about the size of a file cabinet.

And as an amateur astronomer, I've seen a lot of smaller ones. I still remember August 20, 2000 Perseid shower; lots of bolides with smoky trails!

PS: Most of the "meteor" videos on YouTube are fakes.

Hi -

Well, every time you see a meteor shower, you're looking at pea size pieces of comets, and if you've ever seen a large separate meteor, then you've seen a larger piece of asteroid or comet enter the Earth's atmosphere. If you're lucky, you get to see one of these pieces explode in the air, an explosion known as a bolide. If you're really lucky, the small pieces left over fall near you and you find them and sell them for money.

As far as naked eye visible comets goes, such as Comet Halley, there are some compilations of the historical records of their appearances, though these records are still being recovered.

Aside from that, there are also records of recent smaller hits with the Earth, such as that at Sikote Ailin in Kamchatka on Russia's west coast in 1948, and in Norway 2 years ago.

I don't know whether you'll be able to see the fragments of Comet Schwassmann Wachmann 3 when it comes into the inner solar system in 2011, and that will probably depend on how much material is forming its tail, or coma, then.

E.P. Grondine
Man and Impact in the Americas

Annihil88torr wrote:Anyone know exactly how often the Earth see's a Asteroid or Comet? I can't remember the last time I saw a huge Asteroid or Comet fly across the sky.

The Haly bop came by I think in the 80s. I could see it for a week. There was a group of people that thought if they killed themselves they would be leaving this planet behind and flying with it.They shaved there heads and bodys of hair castrated themselves and poisened themselves and layed on beds with purple scarves on there faces.People do all kinds of wierd things when comets or asteroids are coming .Just look at whats happening now.People are waiting for Nibiru to come and end the earth.

almostalien wrote:

Annihil88torr wrote:Anyone know exactly how often the Earth see's a Asteroid or Comet? I can't remember the last time I saw a huge Asteroid or Comet fly across the sky.

The Haly bop came by I think in the 80s. I could see it for a week. There was a group of people that thought if they killed themselves they would be leaving this planet behind and flying with it.They shaved there heads and bodys of hair castrated themselves and poisened themselves and layed on beds with purple scarves on there faces.People do all kinds of wierd things when comets or asteroids are coming .Just look at whats happening now.People are waiting for Nibiru to come and end the earth.

Yes, people do all sorts of weird things, and then there's those people who rely upon peoples' ignorance of ancient impacts and astronomy to make money.

The June 2008 issue of the Atlantic has a good article concerning asteroids. The Jet Propulsion Laboratory web-site
http://www.neo.jpl.nasa.gov/stats keeps a running count on some 5,388 near Earth asteroids and comets. Some 741 of these rocks are considered "Planet Killers". Could any of them be the Mayan killer star? I have no idea.

haji53@Verizon.net wrote:The June 2008 issue of the Atlantic has a good article concerning asteroids. The Jet Propulsion Laboratory web-site
http://www.neo.jpl.nasa.gov/stats keeps a running count on some 5,388 near Earth asteroids and comets. Some 741 of these rocks are considered "Planet Killers". Could any of them be the Mayan killer star? I have no idea.

You have no idea because you didn't finish your homework.

There are no known asteroids on a collision path with Earth for the projected future (into the many hundreds of years).

Stop being a troll.

And stop using your email address as your ID or you'll be spammed into oblivion.

A collision is defenitely possible i noticed that most impactors are small ones that barely survive our atmosphere but consider that most of these collisions with our atmosphere are usually only seen when they actually hit our atmosphere or a few ours before.

I remeber that an asteroid which released an energy equivalent of one kiloton of tnt was only observed a few ours before it actually hit our atmosphere. So if nasa failsto detect all asteroids out there (even those under their own nose) then when might assume that the list of pha's (potentionally hazardous asteroids) is certainly not complete on their website.

We can always be suprised by an asteroid, look even if nasa discovers an asteroid that could disrupt our daily lives it would never render the information publicly or otherwise you would have an instant crash in the markets leading to a global meltdown.

This is also the main reason why the government of the usa isn't doing anything about the budget deficit or the the 9 trillion of debt. It simply doesn't matter anymore if the theorie of nibiru becoming visible by mid - end 2009 then it makes sense that they will let the markets crash in 2009 because it would crash anyway when people start seeing nibiru there will be worldwide panic.

Just read the 6900 protocols and the report about the secret meeting of congress it all makes sense martial law the coming depression, they will literally divert our attention when nibiru becomes visible because then people worldwide could awaken from the fact they have been lied too for so many years then the masonic global government will no longer hide itself you will see a global dictatorship emerging during the coming of nibiru leading ultimately to ww3.

I know this sounds spectacular but just think for a second those millions of coffins in the usa and the many fema concentration camps are not there just to fill the countryside. They are there for a reason to kill every form of opposition or protest during the upheavels caused by nibiru and the most obvious upheavel will be a total economic collapse that's really inevitable imagine the world staring at nibiru and sensing the danger day by day imagine the frustration when the masses will start to comprehend that the governments knew many decades about this
and prepared underground bunkers for a select few. When people have nothing to loose they will turn against the lying basterds that knew all along there might be even revolutions starting all over the globe.

And it's not only in the us that governments are shifting into vicious concealed dictatorships, this phenomenon is worldwide it is being done secretely the mass media doesn't tell a word about it as it mostly controlled by the governments themselves.

Look at the chemtrails they are a global phenomenon that means global consent that means global dictatorship the new world order is already in place. There just waiting for the catalyst to implement it nibiru will be the key of their world dictatorship because a global hazard needs a global solution.

youcef, you are gonna be so embarrased in 2013.

Just to let everyone know, tonight at five forty seven precisely above Poole in Dorset, there was a very clear comet in the sky travelling in a straight line in the direction of Bouurnemouth to Poole. it was very large and orange, had a tail and appeared to be a big orangey red ball of fire , it was very clear and alarmed myself and the kids, Is this normal, can anyone tell me about this or what we saw, Ive looked comets up since and its definitely what we saw, just cant believe how it seemed so big and clear.