Precursor Warnings?

30 Shevat 5776
Rosh Chodesh `א Adar `א

Meteorite Killed Man at Indian College, Says Chief Minister
A man was killed and three others were injured Saturday in what authorities said was a meteorite strike at a college campus in the southern Indian state of Tamil Nadu.

An unidentified object left a four-feet deep crater after falling near a cafeteria inside the Bharathidasan Engineering College campus at about 12.30 p.m. on Saturday, G. Baskar, principal of the college in Tamil Nadu’s Vellore district, said.

“There was a noise like a big explosion,” said Mr. Baskar. “It was an abnormal sound that could be heard till at least 3 kilometers [about 2 miles] away,” he added.

It would be the first time in modern history that a person has been killed by a meteorite.

The powerful explosion smashed the windows of classrooms and the windshields of vehicles parked in the vicinity. Students at the college were immediately sent home and classes were suspended until Wednesday.

Mr. Baskar described the tiny rock fragments observed at the site of the explosion on Saturday as “blue-ish black” in color.

V. Kamaraj, who operated a bus for the college, suffered severe injuries while he was walking close to the area where the object struck. He died Saturday. Three others, including two gardeners working inside the campus and a student at the college, were also injured during the incident.

100-Foot Asteroid to Buzz Earth Next Month
An asteroid as long as a basketball court will give Earth a close shave next month — though scientists aren't sure just how close.

The near-Earth asteroid 2013 TX68, which is thought to be about 100 feet (30 meters) in diameter, will zoom past our planet on March 5. The space rock could come as close as 11,000 miles (17,700 kilometers) — less than 5 percent of the distance from Earth to the moon....

If 2013 TX68 or another asteroid of its size were to slam into Earth, it would probably explode in an airburst about twice as energetic as the Chelyabinsk event, NASA officials said.

According to this newly updated chart from SpaceWeather.com, that distance is now calculated at 10,511.6 miles - half the distance between the earth's surface and orbiting satellites.