NASA, ESA: Asteroid the size of 2.5 chinchillas explodes over Russia
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NASA, ESA: Asteroid the size of 2.5 chinchillas explodes over Russia

Posted on by Amelia Pressman

An asteroid the size of two and a half chinchillas hit Earth over Siberia, Russia, on Tuesday, according to the European Space Agency (ESA) and NASA.

The asteroid, temporarily named C0WECP5, was first discovered by scientists at Kitt Peak National Observatory in Arizona.

The asteroid was estimated to be about 70 centimeters in diameter and hit the atmosphere around 11:14 a.m. EST. The asteroid burned up harmlessly in the sky over the Olyokminsky district in eastern Russia, footage already shared on social media shows.

The asteroid is currently only the 11th asteroid ever discovered by scientists before impacting Earth, and is the fourth recorded asteroid impact in 2024.

How big was the asteroid that hit Earth?

NASA and ESA estimates suggest that asteroid C0WECP5 is about 70 centimeters in diameter.

A vivid picture of a chinchilla. (Source: PIXABAY)

To put this into perspective, let’s compare it to something else small and generally harmless: a chinchilla.

According to the Smithsonian, long-tailed chinchillas can range in height from 9 to 14 inches (23 to 36 centimeters) and have a tail from seven to 6 inches (7 to 15 centimeters).

If you add that up carefully and use the smallest possible estimates, a long-tailed chinchilla can be around 30 centimeters long. This means the asteroid is about the size of two and a half long-tailed chinchillas.

And just like two and a half chinchillas hurtling through space and hitting Earth’s atmosphere, this asteroid would never harm Earth and would instead burn up harmlessly in the sky.

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Can we defend ourselves against asteroid impacts?

While this asteroid impact caused no damage, other impacts have the potential to cause severe destruction.

Therefore, scientists in the field of planetary defense have been working hard to find ways to avert possible catastrophic impacts.

Initiatives like NASA’s Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) mission are promising in this regard, as they have been shown to be able to change the orbit of asteroids. However, they still need a lot of time to prepare and launch before the asteroids get too close.

What was special about this impact, however, was that scientists were able to predict it.

An asteroid impact is one of the most dangerous natural disasters that can happen, and one of the most important steps in defending the planet is being able to predict it.

However, experts have taken this threat seriously and major space agencies around the world are running extensive asteroid detection programs.



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