The path of 3122 Florence through the sky this week, times for the tick marks are in EDT (UT-4 hours).
Credit: Starry Night Education software.
Posted on 08/30/2017 8:21:40 AM PDT by BenLurkin
We’ve got an interesting pass of a Near Earth Asteroid (NEA) this upcoming U.S. Labor Day weekend, one that just slides over the +10th magnitude line into binocular range.
3122 Florence, which passes 4.4 million miles from our fair planet (that’s 7 million kilometers, about 18 times the distance from Earth to the Moon) this Friday on September 1st at 12:06 Universal Time (UT)/ 8:06 AM Eastern Daylight Saving Time (EDT).
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Ordinarily, a four million mile pass (...just under the criterion to make 3122 Florence a Near Earth Object) isn’t enough to grab our attention. Lots of asteroids pass closer weekly, and 3122 Florence is certainly no danger to the Earth this or any week in the near future. What makes this asteroid an attractive target is its size: NASA’s NEOWISE and Spitzer infrared telescope missions estimate that 3122 Florence is about 2.7 miles (4.4 kilometers) in diameter, a pretty good-sized chunk of rock as near Earth asteroids go.
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This week’s pass sees 3122 Florence rapidly vaulting up from the southern to northern hemisphere.
This apparition culminates on Friday, September 1st, at 12:06 UT as the asteroid crosses the along the border of the constellations Equuleus and Delphinus at closest approach, reaching +9th magnitude. 3122 Florence will be moving at 20′ per hour (that’s about 2/3rds the diameter of the Full Moon) at closest approach, fast enough that you’ll notice its motion against the background stars in a low power field of view after about 10 minutes or so.
3122 Florence crosses through the constellations Piscis Austrinus, Capricornus, Aquarius, Equuleus and Delphinus this week. Keep in mind, the Moon is headed towards Full next week on September 6th, making the next few evenings a good time to track this fleeting space rock down.
(Excerpt) Read more at universetoday.com ...
“3122 Florence”
Looks like a street address.
My first thought as well.
My aunt an uncle lived on Florence street in Memphis when I was a kid in the 60’s..................
Cousin Dale: Naw, but my dad does. Can't even sit on the toilet some days.
“3122 Florence passes 4.4 million miles from our fair planet, about 18 times the distance from Earth to the Moon...”
That’s a pretty far miss. Now if that asteroid were to pass BETWEEN the moon and the Earth, then I’d be worried!
Were it just to pass between the earth and moon, it would be a disaster.
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