The fifth annual International Asteroid Day happens this Sunday, June 30, 2019. Recognized by the United Nations, Asteroid Day marks a global opportunity to raise awareness of the threat and opportunity posed by the numerous rocky bodies zooming through space.
This year, Asteroid Day events will focus on the role of asteroids in the formation of our solar system and advances in technology to better detect, track and analyze asteroids and review our ability to deflect a rogue asteroid headed towards Earth.
Asteroid Day events range from asteroid quizzes in a Dublin bar, to high-level discussions of policy and programs at the National Air and Space Museum in Washington, D.C. There’s a list of events all around the world here. To find an Asteroid Day event near you, scroll down to the middle of the page and enter your location.
Asteroid Day is held on the anniversary of the most devastating asteroid impact in Earth’s recent history – an event that took place on June 30, 1908, known as the Tunguska explosion, when a small asteroid struck the Earth over Tunguska, Siberia. Here’s the premise of Asteroid Day, in the words of co-founder Brian May, astrophysicist, guitarist and songwriter for the band Queen:
Our goal is to dedicate one day each year to learn about asteroids, the origins of our universe, and to support the resources necessary to see, track and deflect dangerous asteroids from Earth’s orbital path. Asteroids are a natural disaster we know how to prevent.