NASA to Broadcast Asteroid Flyby of Earth
Feb. 13, 2013: NASA Television will provide
commentary starting at 2 p.m. EST (11 a.m. PST) on Friday, Feb. 15,
during the close, but safe, flyby of a small near-Earth asteroid
named "2012 DA14." NASA places a high priority on tracking asteroids
and protecting our home planet from them. This flyby will provide a
unique opportunity for researchers to study a near-Earth object up
close.
The half-hour broadcast from NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory
(JPL) in Pasadena, Calif., will incorporate real-time animation to
show the location of the asteroid in relation to Earth, along with
live or near real-time views of the asteroid from observatories in
Australia, weather permitting.
2012 DA14. Also, in a related blog, Bill Cooke of the
Marshall Space Flight Center answers the question
"Can I see the Upcoming Asteroid Flyby?"
At the time of its closest approach to Earth at approximately
2:25 p.m. EST (11:25 a.m. PST/ 19:25 UTC), the asteroid will be
about 17,150 miles (27,600 kilometers) above Earth’s surface.
Measuring approximately 50 meters wide, 2012 DA14 is about half the
size of a football field. Since regular sky surveys began in the
1990s, astronomers have never seen an object this big come so close
to our planet. The asteroid will actually pass closer to Earth than
many manmade satellites.
The commentary will be available via NASA
TV and streamed live online at
http://www.nasa.gov/ntv and
http://www.ustream.tv/nasajpl2
In addition to the commentary, near
real-time imagery of the asteroid’s flyby before and after closest
approach, made available to NASA by astronomers in Australia and
Europe, weather permitting, will be streamed beginning at about noon
EST (9 a.m. PST) and continuing through the afternoon at
http://www.ustream.tv/nasajpl2
Also, a Ustream feed of the flyby from a
telescope at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville,
Ala., will be streamed for three hours starting at 9 p.m. EST (8
p.m. CST). To view the feed and ask researchers questions about the
flyby via Twitter, visit
http://www.ustream.tv/channel/nasa-msfc
For more information, including graphics
and animations showing the flyby of 2012 DA14, visit
www.nasa.gov/asteroidflyby