Recently this was the scene in the skies over the Philippines, as an unexpected asteroid ripped through the atmosphere and lit up the sky as it burned up. Experts say this type of surprise is extremely rare, as astronomers around the world are constantly tracking incoming space rocks.
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00:00Recently, this was the scene in the skies over the Philippines, as an unexpected asteroid
00:09ripped through the atmosphere and lit up the sky as it burned up.
00:13Experts say this type of surprise is extremely rare, as astronomers around the world are
00:17constantly tracking incoming space rocks.
00:19However, every once in a while one gets through, and this one was epic.
00:23The asteroid has now been named 2024 RW1, and despite initial reports indicating a touchdown,
00:29it actually didn't.
00:30Experts at NASA say it burned up in its entirety before making an impact.
00:34Those same experts say it measured around 3.2 feet in diameter and entered the atmosphere
00:39over the island of Luzon.
00:40According to the ESA, this is only the ninth asteroid that humankind has ever spotted before
00:45impact.
00:46And this isn't the first surprise one either.
00:47In 2013, an 18-ton asteroid entered our atmosphere and exploded over a city in Russia.
00:54The resulting debris caused massive damage to the area, with around 1,500 people requiring
00:59medical assistance in the wake of the asteroid event.
01:01A not-so-gentle reminder of just how wild and chaotic the cosmos can be.