FIRE-EARTH Bulletin NO. 42

IMPORTANT ANNOUNCEMENT

FIRE-EARTH Bulletin NO. 42
Coming soon. Stay tuned!

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15-Meter Asteroid Narrowly Misses Earth

Asteroid detected hours before narrowly missing Earth

A 15-meter asteroid was detected hours before it narrowly missed the Earth over the weekend, Russian scientists said.

Russian researchers recorded the celestial object as it approached the earth on Friday.

Asteroid detected by Sternberg Astronomical Institute. © Photo Moscow State University/MASTER/Vladimir Lipunov

“[The asteroid] was discovered on Friday night by our station near Lake Baikal and nine hours later it flew within 11,300 kilometers of the Earth surface, below the orbit of geostationary satellites. It was about 15 meters in size,” said Vladimir Lipunov of the Moscow State University and the Sternberg Astronomical Institute.

Asteroid detected by Sternberg Astronomical Institute
© Photo Moscow State University/MASTER/Vladimir Lipunov

International Astronomical Union has not yet confirmed the event.

A 10,000-ton meteoroid exploded over the city of Chelyabinsk on February 15 and blasted out thousands of windows, injuring about 1,500 people.

Related Links

• Suspected Meteorite Hits Central Cuba February 16, 2013
• Stratospheric Explosion in Russian Urals Damages Buildings in 6 Cities February 15, 2013
• MASTER-II Tunka

Air Pollution: Visibility Down to 10 Meters in E China

Severe air pollution in China forces expressways to close

Many parts of China experienced extremely poor visibility on Sunday due to severe air pollution. Visibility in the eastern province of Jiangsu was reduced to 10 meters forcing authorities to close expressways for the day.

The capital Beijing recorded the highest level of hazardous PM2.5 concentration on a 6-point scale.

The heavy smog persisted in Beijing, Tianjin and Hebei Province on Monday.

“Levels of PM2.5 particles are above 200 micrograms per cubic meter in most urban areas of the capital, that’s above safe levels. Many areas have a level 5 ‘heavy pollution’ warning, with some places at level 6, the highest pollution level,” said a report.

Authorities are warning residents to stay indoors, or wear masks to reduce harm to their eyes and lungs.

Visibility in the eastern province of Jiangsu was reduced to 10 meters forcing authorities to close expressways on Sunday. Screenshot from news clip posted on NHK site.

Outdoor air pollution contributed to 1.2 million premature deaths [that’s the equivalent of about 25 million healthy years of life from the population] in China in 2010, about 40 percent of the global total, said a report.

WUTIP Making Landfall in Central Vietnam

Powerful winds, torrential rains lashing Indochina Peninsula as WUTIP targets Vietnam

Typhoon WUTIP is lashing eastern coast of Indochina Peninsula with high winds and heavy rains as it moves closer to landing in central Vietnam.

Typhoon WUTIP is about to make landfall on the east coast of central Vietnam with sustained winds of about 140 km/hr gusting up to 170 km/hr. The typhoon weakened slightly overnight to the equivalent of a Cat 1 hurricane force.

Typhoon WUTIP (TY 20W)

• Current position: Near 17.2ºN, 107.5E (03:32UTC on Monday, September 30, 2013)
• Movement: 25 km/hr, 280 degrees
• Max Sustained Winds: 140 km/hr
• Max Wind Gusts: 170 km/hr (expected to increase to 245km/hr)

Expected landfall: About 06:00UTC on September 30, 2013

Typhoon WUTIP. Visible/Shortwave IR Satellite Image recorded at 04:32UTC on Monday, September 30, 2013. Source: CIMSS/SSEC/WISC.

Typhoon WUTIP – Water Vapor Satellite Image, with the projected path superimposed. Image recorded at 04:32UTC on Monday, September 30, 2013. Source: CIMSS/SSEC/WISC. FIRE-EARTH Enhancement.

74 missing after typhoon sinks boats in South China Sea

Forty seven people are reported missing after Typhoon WUTIP capsized three fishing boats in the South China Sea on Monday, said a report.

Related Links

• Typhoon WUTIP Headed for Vietnam, Laos, Thailand September 29, 2013