Chelyabinsk meteor: Will asteroids hit Earth?

Chelyabinsk meteor incident took place a decade ago but memories of that fateful day are yet to become hazy. On February 15, 2013, a footage was detected and it showcased that an asteroid comparable to size of a house was entering the Earth's atmosphere. The asteroid, now known as Chelyabinsk meteor, was travelling 11 miles per second.

It eventually exploded but the force that was generated was 30 times more than the US atom bomb which destroyed Japanese city of Hiroshima during the World War II.

More than hundred people were injured, buildings were damaged and windows were broken after the Chelyabinsk meteor had exploded.


NASA planetary defence officer Lindley Johnson claimed that if the meteor was directly over the city, the magnitude of impact and scale of damage would have been worse.

Chelyabinsk meteor was considered as a small asteroid, as per a Sky report. Its approach to Earth during daylight also made it difficult to see coming.

According to an expert, most of these objects come from asteroids belt between Jupiter and Mars. It is easy to detect these objects when they approach the inner solar system during the night time. However, when they come during the daytime and loop around the sun, then the situation becomes vulnerable.

NASA has been working on Near-Earth Object (NEO) Surveyor which will cost $1.2 billion. The NEO Surveyor is the first space telescope that was designed to spot comets and asteroids which may pose threat to the Earth.

NASA has predicted that since the Earth's 70 per cent is covered by water, most asteroids are likely to end up in the ocean. Chelyabinsk-like incident is a once-in-a-century event, as per the NASA, the Sky News reported.

According to an expert, 31,000 tracked asteroids are not predicted to hit the Earth in the next 100 years. However, research is on for more accurate conclusion, according to Sky News.

FAQs:

1. Did they find the Chelyabinsk meteor?
   Scientists found fragments of Chelyabinsk meteor.
2. What if the Chelyabinsk meteor hit?
   If Chelyabinsk meteor was direct over the city then the strike would have been catastrophic.