Bob McDonald explains the Russian meteor
The meteor that streaked across the Russian sky before exploding over the Ural Mountains "punched a hole in the air," says the CBC's top science reporter.
Earth is in the universe's 'shooting range' says CBC Radio's Quirks and Quarks host
The meteor that streaked across the Russian sky before exploding over the Ural Mountains "punched a hole in the air," says the CBC’s top science reporter.
Bob McDonald, host of CBC Radio’s Quirks & Quarks, said the meteor was travelling about 10 times faster than a supersonic jet when it broke apart over Russia with a massive boom. McDonald said that sound — which many mistook for a massive bomb blast — was actually an "airburst."
Friday’s meteor strike, while an amazing sight, is nothing new.
"We’re in a shooting gallery," McDonald said, of Earth’s spot in the universe. Thousands of small asteroids are constantly streaking past the planet — including 2012 DA14, another asteroid that buzzed by Earth on Friday.