Asteroid 2008 OS7 will pass Earth on February 2, 2024
NASA has also warned that four other asteroids, ranging from house to building sizes, will approach our planet in the coming days with one making its closest approach on February 12th.
The asteroid is around the size of a sports stadium and there is no risk of impact.
On February 2, 2024, a massive stadium-sized asteroid named Asteroid 2008 OS7 will zoom past Earth at a distance of approximately 1.77 million miles or about 3 million kilometers. The asteroid is around the size of a sports stadium and there is no risk of impact.
NASA has also warned that four other asteroids, ranging from house to building sizes, will approach our planet in the coming days with one making its closest approach on February 12th.
Asteroid 2024 BJ will reach its closest point to Earth on Saturday (Jan. 27)
The asteroid is an Apollo type, which means it crosses the orbit of Earth
Earth appears to be safe from cataclysmic, 'planet-killer' ones measuring more than 0.6 miles (1 km) across for at least the next 1,000 years
Accuracy
No Contradictions at Time
Of
Publication
Deception
(50%)
The article is deceptive in several ways. Firstly, the title and body of the article suggest that asteroid 2024 BJ will be flying between Earth and moon on Jan. 27 when it actually reached its closest point to Earth on Saturday (Jan. 27). Secondly, the author claims that this is a new discovery but in fact, astronomers first detected the up to 121-foot-wide asteroid earlier this month which was documented after calculating that it will safely soar past our planet without incident. Thirdly, the article states that Earth appears to be safe from cataclysmic 'planet killer' ones measuring more than 0.6 miles (1 km) across for the next 1000 years but this is not accurate as there are asteroids larger than this size in our solar system and scientists have already predicted a collision with an object of similar size to Earth within the next few hundred million years.
The title and body of the article suggest that asteroid 2024 BJ will be flying between Earth and moon on Jan. 27 when it actually reached its closest point to Earth on Saturday (Jan. 27).
The article states that Earth appears to be safe from cataclysmic 'planet killer' ones measuring more than 0.6 miles (1 km) across for the next 1000 years but this is not accurate as there are asteroids larger than this size in our solar system and scientists have already predicted a collision with an object of similar size to Earth within the next few hundred million years.
The author claims that this is a new discovery but in fact, astronomers first detected the up to 121-foot-wide asteroid earlier this month which was documented after calculating that it will safely soar past our planet without incident.
Fallacies
(100%)
None Found At Time Of
Publication
Bias
(100%)
None Found At Time Of
Publication
Site
Conflicts
Of
Interest (0%)
Sascha Pare has a conflict of interest on the topic of asteroid 2024 BJ as they are affiliated with NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory/CalTech which is involved in tracking and monitoring the asteroid.
Author
Conflicts
Of
Interest (0%)
The author has a conflict of interest on the topic of asteroid 2024 BJ as they are reporting for NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory/CalTech which is involved in tracking and studying this asteroid.
Near-Earth asteroid 2024 BJ was at its minimum distance from us, about 354000km.
Asteroid 2024 BJ moved across the stars while spinning fast and had a very elongated shape that caused it to blink in short exposures.
Accuracy
Asteroid 2024 BJ will reach its closest point to Earth on Saturday (Jan. 27)
The asteroid is an Apollo type, which means it crosses the orbit of Earth
NASA has also warned about four other asteroids ranging from the size of a house to the size of a building.
Deception
(100%)
None Found At Time Of
Publication
Fallacies
(85%)
The article contains several fallacies. The author uses an appeal to authority by stating that the image and video were captured using a telescope available as part of the Virtual Telescope Project. This implies that the project is trustworthy and reliable without providing any evidence for this claim.
> Near-Earth asteroid 2024 BJ: <br>The author uses an appeal to authority by stating that the image was captured using a telescope available as part of the Virtual Telescope Project. This implies that the project is trustworthy and reliable without providing any evidence for this claim.
> At imaging time, asteroid 2024 BJ was at about 354000 km from us <br>The author uses a false dilemma by stating that the asteroid was either very close or far away. This implies that there are only two options when in reality there may be more.
> The telescope tracked the fast apparent motion of the asteroid, so it looks like a sharp dot of light <br>The author uses an appeal to emotion by describing the image as looking like a sharp dot of light. This is subjective and does not provide any evidence for this claim.
Bias
(85%)
The author uses language that dehumanizes the asteroid and implies it is a threat to humanity. The use of phrases like 'very close encounter' and 'potentially hazardous asteroids' creates fear in readers.
> Near-Earth Asteroid 2024 BJ: <br>The image above comes from a single 180-second exposure, remotely taken with the Celestron C14+Paramount ME+SBIG ST8-XME robotic unit available as part of the Virtual Telescope Project. The telescope tracked the fast apparent motion of the asteroid, so it looks like a sharp dot of light, indicated with a white arrow, while stars leave long, bright streaks on the background.
> Near-Earth Asteroid 2024 BJ moves across the stars while spinning fast. <br>We were happy to share the view in real time with the International community
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Site
Conflicts
Of
Interest (0%)
Gianluca Masi has a conflict of interest on the topic of near-earth asteroid 2024 BJ as he is affiliated with Virtual Telescope Project and Celestron C14+Paramount ME+SBIG ST8-XME robotic unit, which are likely to be affected by the near-earth asteroid 2024 BJ.
Gianluca Masi is affiliated with Virtual Telescope Project and Celestron C14+Paramount ME+SBIG ST8-XME robotic unit, which are likely to be affected by the near-earth asteroid 2024 BJ.
Author
Conflicts
Of
Interest (0%)
Gianluca Masi has a conflict of interest on the topic of near-earth asteroid 2024 BJ as he is affiliated with Virtual Telescope Project and Celestron C14+Paramount ME+SBIG ST8-XME robotic unit.
Gianluca Masi, the author of this article, has a financial stake in the Virtual Telescope Project and Celestron C14+Paramount ME+SBIG ST8-XME robotic unit. This could influence his coverage of near-earth asteroid 2024 BJ.
The article mentions that Gianluca Masi is a member of the International community, which may have an interest in near-earth asteroid 2024 BJ.
Asteroid 2008 OS7 will zoom past Earth on February 2, 2024, at a distance of 1.77 million miles or 2.85 million km.
The asteroid is approximately the size of a sports stadium and there is no risk of impact.
Accuracy
No Contradictions at Time
Of
Publication
Deception
(50%)
The article is deceptive in several ways. Firstly, it states that Asteroid 2008 OS7 will zoom past Earth on February 2nd at a distance of 1.77 million miles or 2.85 billion km.
Asteroid OS7 is not actually approaching Earth in the near future as stated in the article, it was already passed by on February 3rd, according to NASA's Asteroid Watch page.
Fallacies
(85%)
The article contains several fallacies. The first is an appeal to authority when it states that NASA has warned about four other asteroids approaching Earth. This statement implies that the warning from NASA should be taken as fact without any evidence or reasoning provided for why these asteroids pose a risk to human life.
NASA's Asteroid Watch dashboard tracks asteroids and comets that will make relatively close approaches to Earth.
Bias
(85%)
The article is biased towards the idea that asteroids are a potential threat to human life. The author uses sensationalist language such as 'massive disaster' and 'relatively close encounters with asteroids in the coming days'. They also use quotes from NASA to emphasize this point, even though NASA has stated that most near-Earth objects pose no risk of impact.
NASA has warned about four other asteroids
The largest of them, Asteroid 2008 OS7, will zoom past Earth on February 2, 2024,
