When the world gets closer.

We help you see farther.

Sign up to our expressly international daily newsletter.

Already a subscriber? Log in .

You've reached your limit of one free article.

Get unlimited access to Worldcrunch

You can cancel anytime .

SUBSCRIBERS BENEFITS

Exclusive International news coverage

Ad-free experience NEW

Weekly digital Magazine NEW

9 daily & weekly Newsletters

Access to Worldcrunch archives

Free trial

30-days free access, then $2.90
per month.

Annual Access BEST VALUE

$19.90 per year, save $14.90 compared to monthly billing.save $14.90.

Subscribe to Worldcrunch
BUSINESS INSIDER

Holy Asteroid Flyby! It's Disturbingly Big, Incredibly Close - But We're Safe. For Now

Look up (with binoculars) for a glance of 2012 DA14, size of half a football field.

Holy Asteroid Flyby! It's Disturbingly Big, Incredibly Close - But We're Safe. For Now
Dina Spector

A "small" asteroid will make a record close approach to Earth this week, coming inside the earth-centric orbit of most man-made satellites.

NASA scientists at the near-Earth object program are monitoring asteroid 2012 DA14 closely and say there is absolutely no chance that the space rock will smash into our planet this time around.

There is a very slight chance that it will hit the Earth when it flies by again in 2110. It was discovered just one year ago.

2012-DA14, artist's rendition (wikipedia)

The asteroid, about half the size of a football field (150 feet in diameter), will however, only be 17,200 miles above Earth's surface when it whips past the eastern Indian Ocean, off Sumatra, around 2:24 p.m. East Coast time. It won't be visible with the naked eye, but could be seen with binoculars.

Most weather and communication satellites circle Earth at a distance of around 22,000 miles — so that's a pretty close shave.

"The flyby of asteroid 2012 DA14 is the closest ever predicted Earth approach for an object this large," NASA said in a press release.

Asteroid 2012 DA 14 is hurtling toward Earth at 17,460 miles per hour and weighs almost 287,000,000 pounds.

Even in the improbable scenario that 2012 DA 14 did smack into Earth, the piece of space debris wouldn't destroy our planet. It would be similar to the Tunguska asteroid, which hit Siberia in 1908, though if it hit a city or an ocean it could create a fair bit of destruction.

NASA's Don Yeomans tells CNN that 2012 DA14 is likely made of stone, which would be less damaging than the asteroid made of metal that "collided with Earth 50,000 years ago, creating the mile wide Meteor Crater" in Arizona and obliterating everything for 50 miles around."

Here's more on the asteroid from NASA:

You've reached your limit of free articles.

To read the full story, start your free trial today.

Get unlimited access. Cancel anytime.

Exclusive coverage from the world's top sources, in English for the first time.

Insights from the widest range of perspectives, languages and countries.

Society

Is Disney's "Wish" Spreading A Subtle Anti-Christian Message To Kids?

Disney's new movie "Wish" is being touted as a new children's blockbuster to celebrate the company's 100th anniversary. But some Christians may see the portrayal of the villain as God-like and turning wishes into prayers as the ultimate denial of the true message of Christmas.

photo of a kid running out of a church

For the Christmas holiday season?

Joseph Holmes

Christians have always had a love-hate relationship with Disney since I can remember. Growing up in the Christian culture of the 1990s and early 2000s, all the Christian parents I knew loved watching Disney movies with their kids – but have always had an uncomfortable relationship with some of its messages. It was due to the constant Disney tropes of “follow your heart philosophy” and “junior knows best” disdain for authority figures like parents that angered so many. Even so, most Christians felt the benefits had outweighed the costs.

That all seems to have changed as of late, with Disney being hit more and more by claims from conservatives (including Christian conservatives) that Disney is pushing more and more radical progressive social agendas, This has coincided with a steep drop at the box office for Disney.

Keep reading...Show less

The latest