New Delhi, September 5: A small asteroid discovered on Wednesday harmlessly burned up in Earth's atmosphere the same day, NASA said.
The asteroid — about 3 feet (1 meter) across — was spotted by astronomers in Arizona and broke apart over the coast of the Philippines hours after the discovery. Asteroid 2024 KN1, As Big As Large Airplane, to Zoom Past Earth Today; Know Time and Other Details.
Asteroid Over the Philippines Coast
☄️💥Woah! Newly discovered 1-1.5m asteroid 2024 RW1 (spotted by near-Earth asteroid hunters in the US) burns up above the Philippines just hours after it was first seen.
This asteroid wasn’t a risk. But if it was, a duck-and-cover warning was possible. pic.twitter.com/Fht4yqRsBP
— Dr Robin George Andrews 🌋☄️ (@SquigglyVolcano) September 4, 2024
This space rock, dubbed 2024 RW1, is only the ninth to have been spotted before its impact. Asteroids around this size hurtle toward Earth about every two weeks without posing any danger. Giant 96-Foot Asteroid 2024 NM3 To Pass Earth by a Narrow Margin Today, Says NASA; Check Details.
The asteroid was discovered through the Catalina Sky Survey, which is run by the University of Arizona and funded by NASA.