2024 XA1

2024 XA1
Discovery[1]
Discovered byV. F. Carvajal
Discovery siteKitt Peak – Bok (V00)
Discovery date3 December 2024
Designations
2024 XA1
C0WEPC5
NEO · Apollo
Orbital characteristics[2]
Epoch 3 December 2024 (JD 2460647.5)
Uncertainty parameter 2
Observation arc9 h (540 min)
Aphelion2.541 AU
Perihelion0.852 AU
1.696 AU
Eccentricity0.4977
2.21 yr (807 d)
349.188°
0° 26m 45.795s / day
Inclination0.108°
72.255°
53.100°
Earth MOID3.27716×10−5 AU (4.90256×103 km)
Physical characteristics[2][3]
~0.7 m (2.3 ft)
32.974±0.476

2024 XA1, formerly designated as C0WEPC5, is a small meteoroid that fell over eastern Siberia near the city of Olekminsk on 3 December 2024, 16:15 GMT, around 1,000 kilometers east of the Tunguska event impact location.[4][5] It is the eleventh impact event ever that was successfully predicted, and the fourth in 2024. The impact was witnessed by many people across the Yakutia region of Siberia.[6]

Discovery

The object was discovered at the Kitt Peak National Observatory in Arizona, United States. The time between discovery and impact was around 12 hours, making it the second-longest lead time between discovery and impact, behind only the discovery and impact of 2008 TC3.[7]

Ground observation

The object exploded as a fireball over eastern Siberia, and was visible to many of the people in that sparsely populated region. Currently, no meteorites have been found yet, but it was speculated to be in the remote forests of that region.[6]

See also

References

  1. ^ "MPEC 2024-X68: 2024 XA1". Minor Planet Electronic Circular. Minor Planet Center. 3 December 2024. Retrieved 4 December 2024.
  2. ^ a b "(2024 XA1) – JPL Small-Body Database Lookup". ssd.jpl.nasa.gov. NASA / JPL. Retrieved 4 December 2024.
  3. ^ P. Dawan (6 December 2024). "'Spectacular' asteroid blazes over Siberia just hours after it was detected". Space.com. Retrieved 7 December 2024.
  4. ^ K. K. Whitt (3 December 2024). "Small asteroid hit Earth's atmosphere over Siberia today". EarthSky.org. Retrieved 4 December 2024.
  5. ^ B. Tingley (3 December 2024). "Tiny asteroid detected hours before hitting Earth to become 4th 'imminent impactor' of 2024". Space.com. Retrieved 4 December 2024.
  6. ^ a b J. Thomson (4 December 2024). "Asteroid nearly hits Earth in Siberian fireball". NewsWeek. Retrieved 5 December 2024.
  7. ^ A. Carpineti; F. Benson (4 December 2024). "2024's Record Fourth Predicted Asteroid Impact Had The Second Longest Warning Time Ever". IFLScience.com. Retrieved 5 December 2024.


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