It orbits only the sun as per astronomer Jose Luis Galache, based at the Minor Planet Center. t.co/UtBnglDkc2 If everything goes well, especially the weather, the northeastern part of the US could witness something rare and at the same time an eerie spectacle. Millions would be actually able to see a space rock obliterating a bright star for a brief period. This space rock, about the size of Rhode Island will put off any light emitting from star Regulus for about 14 seconds. This will take place after 2 am on Thursday this week. This spectacle would be clearly visible in North America and has been recognized by space experts as a marvel that is unprecedented. The best thing is that even those with no exposure or knowledge to astronomy and with very modest space gear would be able to witness this event. A senior editor at the Sky & Telescope magazine has revealed something interesting about this star Regulus. He says that Regulus is within the Leo constellation and would be towards the western half of the sky at that time. It is a first-magnitude star and therefore very bright and visible to rural as well as urban areas. It would not be so clearly visible only in areas like the Times Square where artificial light itself is so brilliant and bright. The space rock is a 45-mile wide one and named Erigone. It is dark and normally is not in proximity with the Earth. It orbits only the sun as per astronomer Jose Luis Galache, based at the Minor Planet Center. He says that observers will see Regulus momentarily blink out and then reappear.
Posted on: Sun, 16 Mar 2014 13:22:13 +0000
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