Every year on June 30th, International Asteroid Day raises public awareness about the hazards of an asteroid impact. It’s also a day to inform the public about crisis communication actions necessary in the event of a credible near-Earth object event.
Considered minor planets, some asteroids even have a companion moon. These massive objects orbit the sun consisting of rock, metals, and other elements. The largest asteroids are over 300 miles in diameter. If they were to collide with Earth, the damage would be extensive.
An asteroid collision would cause environmental impacts, such as shock waves, heat radiation, earthquakes, and tsunamis. The currently known asteroid count is 958,915. Most of these asteroids orbit the sun between Mars and Jupiter. Scientists refer to this area as the asteroid belt. There are three classes of asteroids.
According to scientists, an asteroid named Apophis will come exceptionally close to Earth in 2029. They expect the asteroid to be only 25,000 miles from Earth. Within this distance, Earth has most of its communication satellites. Gravity could cause this asteroid to leave its trajectory and collide with Earth in 2036. Because of asteroids and other near-earth objects, scientists believe we need to have a space system in place by 2040 that will protect our planet from a potential impact.
Four people are credited for founding Asteroid Day. The co-founders include Dr. Brian May, an astrophysicist and lead guitarist for the rock band QUEEN, Danica Remy, President of B612 Foundation, Rusty Schweickart, Apollo 9 astronaut, and filmmaker Grig Richters. June 30th commemorates the date of the Tunguska impact. On June 30th, 1908, a mysterious cosmic impact occurred in Siberia. In 2016, with support from the United Nations, the day became known as International Asteroid Day.
Theme of the International Asteroid Day 2022 is "small is beatiful".
Source: www.un.org
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