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NASA confirms asteroid will miss Earth

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NASA confirms asteroid will miss Earth

3News NZ

2011 AG5, as photographed by the Gemini Observatory in Hawaii

2011 AG5, as photographed by the Gemini Observatory in Hawaii

An asteroid 140m across feared to be on a collision course with Earth will miss, NASA has confirmed.

It was previously believed to have about a one-in-500 chance of hitting us in February, 2040.

Astronomers in Hawaii made new observations of 2011 AG5, as the asteroid is known, and say there is no chance of a collision.

"An analysis of the new data conducted by NASA's Near-Earth Object Program Office at the Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California, shows that the risk of collision in 2040 has been eliminated," NASA said in a statement.

If it did hit the Earth, 2011 AG5 would have released 100 megatons of energy – thousands of times more powerful than the atomic bombs dropped on Japan in World War II, and twice as powerful as Tsar Bomba, the most powerful nuclear bomb ever detonated.

2011 AG5 will miss Earth by around 890,000km, more than twice the distance from here to the Moon.

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Comments

25/12/2012 4:01:08 p.m.

Rick Martinez wrote:

NASA, Take a look at the projected path. Another asteroid way in smaller size at 43 degrees will impact AG5 in 2033 this impact will nudget our way to be followed by a solar burst at that point you will see that the moon will be out of position to block the asteroid. The solar burst will make then make it look as if it were a comit Velocity will then increase by 23^

25/12/2012 2:35:33 p.m.

Erm... wrote:

Yeah, good idea James, let's fire devices off into space without understanding the consequences.

24/12/2012 2:09:38 p.m.

James wrote:

Flip, guess that definitely qualifies as a near miss! Sounds like a good opportunity to test our capabilities of actually being able to take out an asteroid that would hit earth.