Asteroids revolve around the sun but are smaller than planets. (Dieter Spannknebel / The Image Bank / Getty Images)
Look Out Below!
An asteroid will zoom past Earth on Friday
On Friday, an asteroid nearly the width of a football field will fly close to Earth. How close? This asteroid, named 2012 DA14, will zoom between our planet and the sphere of orbiting satellites that surrounds Earth.
Asteroids are space rocks that revolve around the sun but are smaller than planets.
Don’t worry: Researchers have been monitoring the asteroid’s path, and there’s no chance that 2012 DA14 is on a collision course with Earth. In fact, an asteroid of this size hits our planet only about once every 1,200 years.
At 2:24 p.m. Eastern time on February 15, the asteroid will make its closest approach to Earth. Then 2012 DA14 will pass over the Asian country of Indonesia in the Indian Ocean. It will whiz by at speeds of 17,400 miles per hour and be about 17,200 miles above our planet’s surface. The asteroid will be much closer than our moon, which is about 240,000 miles from Earth.
Despite its close proximity to Earth, 2012 DA14 can be seen only with powerful telescopes. It will appear as a tiny dot of light. That’s because the asteroid is only 150 feet across.
Although 2012 DA14 is considered a small asteroid, it’s the largest space rock to come this close to Earth without hitting the planet.
Discovered in 2012, the asteroid has made several near-Earth flybys. Astronomers estimate that this year’s approach is the closest the asteroid will come for at least another 30 years. This opportunity allows researchers to study the space rock up close. They hope it will help them learn more about our planet and galaxy.
NASA Television will document the space rock’s path as the asteroid flies past Earth. You can watch the asteroid event live at NASA’s website and hear commentary from scientists.
- Teacher Store
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Space Rocks
The Teacher Store 
Space Rocks
by Lorraine Jean HoppingSET FEATURES:
- Biographies on contemporary figures
- Includes information on groundbreaking scientific discoveries
- Table of Contents
- Timeline
- Glossary
- Further Resources
- Index
- Published in conjunction with Joseph Henry Press
REVIEWS:
6/1/06 VOYA (Voice of Youth Advocates)
The slender books in this series examine the lives and research of contemporary female scientists. These women had diverse childhoods, and some had to overcome personal and societal prejudices about their career choices. All, however, have a fervent wish to better understand the world in which they live. Their stories are told through pictures and interviews with colleagues and family members. The existing ten titles in the series describe advancements in astronomy, climatology, robotics, and sociology, among other sciences.
Mimi Koehl grew up more interested in carpentry and geometry than in "girl Stuff." She wanted to know more about sea anemones, particularly how they survive the turbulent surf on rocky beaches. Her inquiries and experiments led to discoveries in a new field, biomechanics, in which scientists examine how form determines movement and function in the animal kingdom. A background in art has allowed her to create models fo various body shapes and appendages to test her theories. Once scoffed at, her research has gained worldwide notoriety. She still enjoys hypothesizing solutions to new puzzles and accepts the element of danger that comes with working in the wild.
Adriana Ocampo grew up in Argentina, fascinated by the stars and planets. When her father moved the family to the Untied States, she joined an explorers club at her high school, which in turn led to a field trip to NASA. Her enthusiasm for satellite design and interest in geology eventually led to a job. First helping to design a Mars rover, she then got involved in the search for a crater created by a massive asteroid collision that evidently caused mass extinctions in the age of dinosaurs. She now examines photos of distant planets taken by "fly-by" space probes and is always planning new geological expeditions.
$22.05 You save: 30%
This series should spark the curiosity of any reader, but given the recent suggestion from an academic that women do not posses the analytical faculty that men do, the series might encourage female readers to set their sights high.
Library Binding | Grades 7-9
Grades 7-9 $22.05
