On the evening of December 3, an asteroid will hit the Earth. It is small in size and should collapse in the sky above Siberia without causing any damage.
The celestial body was found on the morning of December 3, 2024, in images taken by the Kitt Peak Observatory’s 2-meter telescope. The asteroid was designated C0WEPC5. According to astronomers’ estimates, its diameter is less than one meter.
C0WEPC5 has attracted the attention of researchers by the fact that in the next few hours it is expected to enter the Earth’s atmosphere over the territory of Siberia. This will happen at 16:15 +/- 05 min UTC (17:15 +/-5 min CET). At the moment of re-entry into the atmosphere, the velocity of C0WEPC5 will be 16 km/s.
Due to its small size, the asteroid poses no threat to our planet. It should disintegrate in the upper atmosphere. This event will be accompanied by the formation of a bright bolide. However, some fragments of the celestial guest may reach the surface.
To date, this is only the eleventh case in the history of advance detection of a celestial body before its fall to Earth. Last time a similar discovery took place in September, when astronomers found an asteroid that entered the atmosphere a few hours later near the Philippine island of Luzon.
