Russian meteor hit without warning - Leicester Space Centre experts
Armageddon-type scenes have been captured on video after an 11-ton meteor exploded over Russia injuring hundreds of people.
The space rock boomed through the Earth’s atmosphere at about 33,000mph - three times the speed of a bullet - at about 9.20am (local time) today, before slowing and exploding into smaller pieces.
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Screen grab taken from dramatic Russian meteor footage
A shock wave from a huge meteorite was felt by people on the ground as it streaked overhead and crash-landed in a lake in Chebarkul, part of Russia's Chelyabinsk region.
Russia’s Ministry of Emergencies said 524 people have been injured, including 82 children.
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It comes as an asteroid, known as 2012DA14, is expected to come within a whisker of the Earth later this evening - but experts said they are not linking the two.
The 150ft-rock will come within about 17,100 miles of our planet - closer than many communications and weather satellites.
Josh Barker, from the Near Earth Orbit Information Programme, based at the National Space Centre, in Leicester, said the Russian meteor had hit without warning, and confirmed it was not related to 2012DA14.
He said: “It wasn’t detected before it entered our atmosphere, it’s small size makes it difficult to spot and it just goes to highlight how difficult it is to track these rocks in space.
“We’re pretty certain that it isn’t related because of the direction of travel.
“2012DA14 is travelling from south to north and any fragments would probably fall in the southern hemisphere.
“The Russian meteor’s flight path wasn’t consistent with what we would expect if it was related to 2012DA14.”
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5 Comments
by foxontherun73
Friday, February 15 2013, 10:17PM
“This one was known as a city killer, if it was to crash on land, very highly unlikely it would just wipe a city out. Not that it would because unlike in films it would most likely crash into the sea or dessert,wasteland.
The one that supposedly wiped out the dinosaurs left a crater 100 miles long under the sea near to Mexico.”
by foxes_75
Friday, February 15 2013, 9:42PM
“Karin... The one that killed the dinosaurs was around 6-7 miles wide whilst this one is a mere 100ft which would be limited to local destruction...i would say enough to wipe out London.”
by karinfall1955
Friday, February 15 2013, 6:47PM
“Isn't this how they believe the dinosaurs were wiped out? Just munching on a tree and kaboom! Perhaps we shouldn't worry too much about the economy etc..Carpe diem and all that..”
by foxes_75
Friday, February 15 2013, 4:43PM
“if you are in easter europe, asia or southern hemisphere, you should be able to see it., you will need a good telescope though!!...its not a big piece of rock.
If you don get to see it, you can wait until it comes back again around 2080 when it'll be only 10,000 miles from earth!!!”
by City_C10
Friday, February 15 2013, 2:34PM
“Wow, this is news; I heard we would be able to see an asteroid/meteoroid tonight in the sky passing Earth. I did not know there was one that actually hit Earth.”