Meteoroid strikes Sudan!

[samjh]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2008_TC3

http://neo.jpl.nasa.gov/news/news160.html

Quite a test for our astronomers!

Luckily it struck a very sparsely populated area. Imagine if the meteoroid hit an urban centre! Evacuation would be impossible!

[LaRoza]

Interesting. Glad it didn't hurt anyone.

Now it is the conspiracy theorists turn :-)

[Sealbhach]

Three metres wide. Still packed a big punch though.

.

[billgoldberg]

Video footage wanted.

[smartboyathome]

Now it is the conspiracy theorists turn :-)

Its a conspiracy, a conspiracy I tell you! This was no meteor, just a WMP which was being tested on Sudan! We may soon have bombs rain upon us from space! :o :p

[smoker]

well, arnie did say 'i'll be back!'

[LaRoza]

Its a conspiracy, a conspiracy I tell you! This was no meteor, just a WMP which was being tested on Sudan! We may soon have bombs rain upon us from space! :o :p

Actually...

See number 2: http://www.cracked.com/article_16477_5-famous-sci-fi-weapons-that-theyre-actually-building.html

(bombs would violate treaties)

[samjh]

Video footage wanted.

LOL

No video, but here's an animation of it approaching Earth, from the asteroid's point of view:
http://orbit.psi.edu/?q=node/22

[billgoldberg]

LOL

No video, but here's an animation of it approaching Earth, from the asteroid's point of view:
http://orbit.psi.edu/?q=node/22

That was pretty cool to see.

[Delvien]

When I first read this, it looked like

Metroid strikes Sudan!.

[Giant Speck]

The title of the thread is a bit misleading, as 2008 TC3 did not actually hit the ground. It exploded tens of kilometers above the Earth's surface.

Had it been large enough to survive the heat of entry, it would have impacted in a remote, uninhabited area in northeastern Sudan.

[LaRoza]

The title of the thread is a bit misleading, as 2008 TC3 did not actually hit the ground. It exploded tens of kilometers above the Earth's surface.

Had it been large enough to survive the heat of entry, it would have impacted in a remote, uninhabited area in northeastern Sudan.

So, if a nuclear weapon were used against a country, it wouldn't count as a strike against that country because they (typically) detonate in the air?

Yes, I am being a PITA, but someone has to do it.

[pp.]

someone has to do it.

Why? The cases do not compare. Detonating a nuke above ground costs lives and emits dangerous substances which are not contained within the target area. Meteoroids exploding at the height at which this one did are not known to do that.

So, there.

[LaRoza]

Why? The cases do not compare. Detonating a nuke above ground costs lives and emits dangerous substances which are not contained within the target area. Meteoroids exploding at the height at which this one did are not known to do that.

So, there.

Oh? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tunguska_event

Fascinating event (and no, I don't buy the exploding UFO theory or the nuclear bomb from the future)

[pp.]

Oh? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tunguska_event

Fascinating event

Indeed. I sit corrected.

[billgoldberg]

(and no, I don't buy the exploding UFO theory or the nuclear bomb from the future)

Moehahah.

That one got me laughing.

[mips]

Fascinating event (and no, I don't buy the exploding UFO theory or the nuclear bomb from the future)

Actually, it was caused by Bigfoot in a fit of rage...

[derekr44]

I remember reading about the asteroid discovery the day they found it (I'm in Arizona, by the observatory btw). Pretty interesting to see what actually happened to it. They originally stated that it wasn't large enough to hit the ground, but big enough to be pretty bright and cause a "pop" or sonic boom sound.

Guess it was more than just a pop.

[smoker]

Oh? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tunguska_event

Fascinating event (and no, I don't buy the exploding UFO theory or the nuclear bomb from the future)

the UFO's for sale on ebay:
http://www.theregister.co.uk/2008/10/07/moller_saucer_ebay/
:lolflag:

[Giant Speck]

Oh? http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tunguska_event

Fascinating event (and no, I don't buy the exploding UFO theory or the nuclear bomb from the future)

Again, your argument is not valid.

The Tunguska event and 2008 TC3 just do not compare. Nor does the Tunguska event compare to a nuclear airburst.

Here is how they are different:

OBJECT SIZE
2008 TC3: Approximately 2.0 to 5.0 meters in diameter.
Tunguska: Several tens of meters in diameter.

ENERGY BLAST
2008 TC3: Estimated at 1 kiloton.
Tunguska: Anywhere between 1 and 30 megatons, with an accepted value of 10 to 15 megatons.

EXPLOSION POINT
2008 TC3: Tens of kilometers above the Earth's surface.
Tunguska: Currently estimated to have exploded between 6 and 10 kilometers above the Earth's surface.

IMPACT POINT AND DAMAGE
2008 TC3: Explosion was not strong enough to create damage to the Earth's surface below hypocenter, located 100 kilometers south of the Egypt/Sudan border, east of the Nile River.
Tunguska: Extensive damage expanding outward from hypocenter, located in the Krasnoyarsk Krai, Russia, along the Tunguska river. The explosion knocked over an estimated 80 million trees in an area measuring over 2,000 square kilometers. A fragment of the Tunguska object is believed to have impacted the Earth eight kilometers NNW of the hypocenter, creating a crater (Lake Cheko) measuring 708 meters long, 364 meters wide, and about 50 meters deep.

The Tunguska event was severe enough and caused enough damage to the Earth's surface to be considered an impact. 2008 TC3 did not and shouldn't be considered to have impacted the Earth.

[LaRoza]

Again, your argument is not valid.

The Tunguska event was severe enough and caused enough damage to the Earth's surface to be considered an impact. 2008 TC3 did not and shouldn't be considered to have impacted the Earth.

The Tunguska event is not fully understood for sure ;)

Should the title of have said "Meteoriod doesn't strike Sudan, but explodes in the air above it?". It was Sudan's airspace wasn't it? Is that not part of Sudan?

Sure, it didn't hit the ground (at least, not in a way that matters) but why is that something to get in a tiff about?

[Giant Speck]

The Tunguska event is not fully understood for sure ;)

Should the title of have said "Meteoriod doesn't strike Sudan, but explodes in the air above it?". It was Sudan's airspace wasn't it? Is that not part of Sudan?

Sure, it didn't hit the ground (at least, not in a way that matters) but why is that something to get in a tiff about?

I didn't get in a tiff about it.

You are the one who started the tiff by disputing what I said and what pp. said.

Anyway, no. It would have been better if it had said "Meteoroid explodes over Sudan."

[LaRoza]

I didn't get in a tiff about it.

You are the one who started the tiff by disputing what I said and what pp. said.

Well, I didn't start it, the person who said it didn't strike Sudan did. It did, unless you don't consider airspace to be part of the nation.

[Giant Speck]

Well, I didn't start it, the person who said it didn't strike Sudan did. It did, unless you don't consider airspace to be part of the nation.

First of all, hello. I'm the person who said it didn't strike Sudan.

Second, you cannot argue that it struck Sudan by saying it was in Sudan's airspace. Tens of kilometers above Sudan does not equate to being in Sudan's airspace.