(143649) 2003 QQ47

(143649) 2003 QQ47
Discovery
Discovered by LINEAR
Discovery date August 24, 2003
Designations
Alternate name(s) none
Minor planet
category		 Apollo asteroid
Epoch October 22, 2004 (JD 2453300.5)
Aphelion 192.756 Gm (1.288 AU)
Perihelion 132.005 Gm (0.882 AU)
Semi-major axis 162.380 Gm (1.085 AU)
Eccentricity 0.187
Orbital period 413.057 d (1.13 a)
Average orbital speed 28.34 km/s
Mean anomaly 290.754°
Inclination 62.102°
Longitude of ascending node 1.014°
Argument of perihelion 105.042°
Physical characteristics
Dimensions 1.24 km
Mass 2.0×1012 kg
Mean density 2.0? g/cm³
Equatorial surface gravity 0.0003 m/s²
Escape velocity 0.0007 km/s
Rotation period ? d
Albedo 0.10?
Temperature ~267 K
Spectral type ?
Absolute magnitude (H) 17.3

(143649) 2003 QQ47 (also written 2003 QQ47) is an asteroid which became briefly notable upon its discovery in late August 2003 when media outlets played up a preliminary report that it had a 1:250,000 chance of colliding with Earth on March 21, 2014.[1]

It was added to the Sentry Risk Table on 30 August 2003.[1] It was removed from the Sentry Risk Table on 14 September 2003.[2]

It is now known that 2003 QQ47 will safely pass 0.1283 AU (19,190,000 km; 11,930,000 mi) from the Earth on 2014-Mar-26.[3][4]

Early reports

A NASA spokesman said,

"Newly discovered asteroid 2003 QQ47 has received considerable media attention over the last few days because it had a small chance of colliding with the Earth in the year 2014 and was rated a "1" on the Torino Impact Hazard Scale, which goes from 0 to 10. The odds of collision in 2014, as estimated by JPL's Sentry impact monitoring system, peaked at 1 chance in 250,000, a result which was posted on our Impact Risk Page on Saturday, August 30, 2003. Impact events at the Torino Scale 1 level certainly merit careful monitoring by astronomers, but these events do not warrant public concern. In fact, each year several newly discovered asteroids reach Torino Scale 1 for a brief period after discovery; 2003 QQ47 is the fourth such case this year.
On September 2, 2003, new measurements of 2003 QQ47's position allowed us to narrow our prediction of its path in 2014, and thus we could rule out any Earth impact possibilities for 2014."[1]

(143649) 2003 QQ47 has a diameter of approximately 1.24 km, and a mass of approximately 2.0×1012 kg. If it were to hit the Earth, it would be a major event, with an energy of approximately 350,000 megatons of TNT (1.5 ZJ), enough to cause global damage.

Dr. Sara Russell, a meteorite researcher at London's Natural History Museum, told the BBC that she was not worried that (143649) 2003 QQ47 would be a danger.

"The odds are very, very low... We have to keep some kind of perspective," she said.[5]

As a result of the press coverage of asteroids such as (143649) 2003 QQ47, astronomers are now planning to re-word the Torino scale, or to phase it out completely in favour of a scale which is less likely to generate false alarms which may reduce public confidence in genuine alerts.

References

  1. ^ a b c "Asteroid 2003 QQ47's Potential Earth Impact in 2014 Ruled Out". NASA/JPL Near-Earth Object Program Office. September 3, 2003. http://neo.jpl.nasa.gov/news/news138.html. Retrieved 2011-11-06. 
  2. ^ "Date/Time Removed". NASA/JPL Near-Earth Object Program Office. http://neo.jpl.nasa.gov/risk/removed.html. Retrieved 2011-05-06. 
  3. ^ "JPL Close-Approach Data: 143649 (2003 QQ47)". 2006-04-27 last obs. http://ssd.jpl.nasa.gov/sbdb.cgi?sstr=2003QQ47;cad=1#cad. Retrieved 2011-11-06. 
  4. ^ "NEODyS-2 Close Approaches for 2003QQ47". Near Earth Objects - Dynamic Site. http://newton.dm.unipi.it/neodys/index.php?pc=1.1.8&n=2003QQ47. Retrieved 2011-11-06. 
  5. ^ "Asteroid danger in 2014 downplayed". BBC News. December 28, 2007. http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/3200019.stm. Retrieved 2011-11-06. 

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