NASA's Catalina Sky Survey finds an asteroid chunk that has hit the Earth almost without warning & # 39;



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In another alarming reminder of our vulnerability to the big rocks falling from space, scientists found an asteroid chunk that hit the Earth with almost no warning.

The Meteorite is a piece of 2018 LA asteroid – has a small rock that illuminated the sky over Botswana in June after being detected hours before the impact.

This is the third time we detect an asteroid coming into contact with the Earth. Sky Survey, part of the NASA Planetary Defense Mission

Watch the skies (Getty)

Kalahari Game Reserve Central Botswana (CKGR).

Members of the team calculated where fragments of asteroids would have fallen – after being washed away while crossing the atmosphere

The first meteorite was found after five days walking and scouring the ground in the game reserve.

The researchers hope this will allow researchers to calibrate NASA's "Earth Defense" system. 19659011] Scientists discover an asteroid chunk that strikes Earth 'without warning'. Source: Peter Jenniskens / Botswana International University of Science and Technology "class =" img-align-none size-full wp-image-7693756 "data-rewritten =" true "/>

Source: Peter Jenniskens / Botswana International University of Science and Technology
Asteroid 2018 LA (formerly ZLAF9B2) seen on a farm in Vanzylsrus, South Africa (Photo: Melissa Delport / YouTube)

The asteroid hit the Earth at 38,000 km / h and caused the The appearance of a huge fireball in the sky over Botswana, Africa – 19 hours after its detection in early June

"However, this real-world event allows us to see the light of day. exercise our capabilities and give some confidence that our impact prediction models are adequate to meet the demand. " potential impact of a larger object. & # 39;

"The discovery of the 2018 LA asteroid is only the third time that an asteroid has been discovered on an impact trajectory," said Paul Chodas, director of the Center for Research and Development. the study of the near-Earth objects of NASA

. It is also only the second time that the high probability of an impact was predicted well before the event itself.

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