What a hit!
Read the words in each box. Then match the boxes
with one of the words in right column.
approach, fly by, pass, hit - the Earth
EXPLOSION
trajectory, orbit
SATELLITE
destruction, collision, shockwave, impact
ASTEROID
PART I -
READING
15 February 2013
An asteroid half the size of a football
field will pass closer than many
satellites when it whizzes by, but it
A meteor crashing in Russia's Ural mountains injured at least 950 people,
including 200 children, at least 46 remain in hospital.
The meteorites fell in the Chelyabinsk region and most people suffered cuts and
bruises as they were rushing to the windows to look at the falling fireball. The
shockwave that followed broke the windows. President Vladimir Putin said he
thanked God no big fragments had fallen in populated areas.
A large meteorite landed in a lake near Chebarkul, a town in Chelyabinsk region.
"It was quite extraordinary," Chelyabinsk resident Polina Zolotarevskaya told BBC
News. "We saw a very bright light and then there was a kind of a track, white and
yellow in the sky."
"The explosion was so strong that some windows in our building and in the buildings
that are across the road and in the city in general, the windows broke."
Officials say a large 7,000 tonne meteor, that entered the atmosphere at a speed at
least 54,000 kph, partially burned up in the lower atmosphere, resulting in a number
of meteorites falling earthwards.
won't hit the planet, NASA scientists
say.
The asteroid 2012 DA14 will fly by
Earth on Feb. 15 and zip within 27,
680 kilometers of the planet during
the cosmic close encounter. The
asteroid will approach much closer to
Earth than the moon, and well inside
the paths of navigation and
communications satellites.
An icy lake near Chebarkul, where
police say a meteorite landed
Reading Comprehension TRUE, FALSE or DOESN´T SAY?
1. On 15 February two asteroids approached the Earth.
2. Both asteroids hit the Earth.
3. The asteroid that hit the Earth was called 2012 DA14.
4. The shockwave injured 200 children playing in the streets.
5. The asteroid that hit Russia was larger than 2012 DA14.
6. The asteroid hit a very populated Russian region.
PART II –
LISTENING
http://www.ustream.tv/nasajpl2
The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) is the agency of the
United States government that is responsible for the nation's civilian space program
and space research.
You are going to watch the video NASA prepared about the asteroid 2012 DA14 flyby.
As you watch the first part of the video, answer the following questions:
DA14 REALITY CHECK
1. What is the size of the 2012 DA14 asteroid?
2. Where could people observe it?
3. Could people see it with a naked eye, without a pair of binoculars or a telescope?
4. Did this meteor get closer to the Earth than the satellites are?
5. Who discovered this meteor?
6. Has an asteroid of this size ever hit the Earth? If yes when and where?
7. Is this asteroid a threat for people?
AN INTERVIEW WITH PAUL CHODAS, A SCIENTIST
1. Paul describes the events from 15 February as:
a) extremely dangerous
b) quite common
c) exciting
2. Paul says that the two meteors
a) are part of one bigger asteroid
b) are not related
c) have the same trajectory
3. The meteor that hit Russia was
a) a bit smaller than 2012 DA14
b) much smaller than 2012 DA14
c) about the same size as 2012 DA14
4. How does Paul comment the events in Russia?
a) The mother Nature shows how dangerous even tiny asteroids can be.
b) Russia is a country that attracts asteroids, meteors, and other space objects.
c) It is a miracle that no people were killed.
ANSWERS
Reading Comprehension TRUE , FALSE or DOESN´T SAY?
1. On 15 February two asteroids approached the Earth.
2. Both asteroids hit the Earth.
3. The asteroid that hit the Earth was called 2012 DA14.
4. The shockwave injured 200 children playing in the streets.
5. The asteroid that hit Russia was larger than 2012 DA14.
6. The asteroid hit a very populated Russian region.
TRUE
FALSE
FALSE
FALSE
DOESN´T SAY
FALSE
DA14 REALITY CHECK
1. What is the size of the 2012 DA14 asteroid? 45-50 metres in diameter
2. Where could people observe it? Australia, Asia, Eastern Europe
3. Can you see it with a naked eye, without a pair of binoculars? No.
4. Did this meteor get closer to the Earth than the satellites are? Yes.
5. Who discovered this meteor?
Spanish astronomers in La Sagra
6. Has an asteroid of this size ever hit the Earth? If yes when and where?
Yes, it has. On June 30, 1908 in Tunguska – Siberia, Russia.
7. Is this asteroid a threat for people?
No, this one isn´t. It cannot hit the Earth.
AN INTERVIEW WITH PAUL CHODAS, A SCIENTIST
1. Paul describes the events from 15 February as:
a) extremely dangerous
b) quite common
c) exciting
2. Paul says that the two meteors
a) are part of one bigger asteroid
b) are not related
c) have the same trajectory
3. The meteor that hit Russia was
a) a bit smaller than 2012 DA14
b) much smaller than 2012 DA14
c) about the same size as 2012 DA14
4. How does Paul comment the events in Russia?
a) The mother Nature shows how dangerous even tiny asteroids can be.
b) Russia is a country that attracts asteroids, meteors, and other space objects.
c) It is a miracle that no people were killed.