The comet named after the array of cameras and telescopes on Mount Haleakala on Maui may sport a very cool dust tail, says NASA, and it's one the first of two comets expected over the Northern Hemisphere in 2013.
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Friday, March 15
Comet fans, it's time to turn your eyes skyward. From March 6 to 24, the Comet Pan-STARRS will be passing within view, NASA says... but it might take binoculars, clear skies, and a unobstructed view of the horizon. By March, 10, when it passes closest to the sun says EarthSky.org, which has a Pan-STARRS viewing guide it will not only get brighter, but may develop the classic comet dust tail as the heat vaporizes the ice and dust. To see it, you'll have to look to the western horizon just after sunset, away from streetlights and other sources of light. As coastsiders, we have an advantage here. Anyone inland should get as high in elevation as possible to see the comet. Depending on the date, it should be visible just after sunset for 45 …
The meteor reportedly unleashed a shock wave that smashed windows, collapsed roofs and injured more than 980 people.
The Washington Post reports a meteor that disintegrated Friday morning over the Russian city of Chelyabinsk, injuring more than 980 people, has no connection to an asteroid set to come within 17,200 miles of Earth about 2:25 p.m. today. Check out a photo gallery of images of the site where the meteor hit and the damage it left in its wake, shared by the Washington Post. The following was posted on NASA's website: Those here in the United States interested in watching the asteroid can do so online — click here to watch NASA's Ustream.
A Discovery News reports says that while this particular asteroid won't hit Earth, the planet WILL get hit by a large asteroid and humans WILL be here to witness it.
Things in space can get far out — literally. But sometimes things get a little too close for comfort. Thank goodness that's not the case with an asteroid the size of a cruise ship — 2012 DA14 — that Discovery News reports will safely bypass Earth on Feb. 15. But, and there IS a but ... in relative space distances, the asteroid is cutting it close — 17,200 miles from our planet or 1/13th the distance from the Earth to the moon, according to the report. The asteroid is coming close enough that Earth's gravitational pull will affect its orbit around the sun, shortening it from 368 days to 317. If something the size of Asteroid 2012 DA14 did hit Earth, it would cause crippling damage on a local scale. According to the report, it is …
