Asteroid 2024 BX1 (Sar2736) impacts Earth’s atmosphere over Berlin, Germany – the 8th predicted impact on record

A small asteroid designated 2024 BX1 (temporary designation Sar2736) impacted Earth’s atmosphere near Berlin, Germany at 00:33 UTC on January 21, 2024. This asteroid was discovered about 3 hours before impact, making it the 8^th asteroid to be discovered before impacting Earth.

The object belonged to the Apollo class of Asteroids and had an estimated diameter between 0.7 and 1.6 m (2.23 – 5.2 feet).

2024 BX1 was discovered about 150 minutes before impact by astronomer Krisztián Sárneczky at GINOP-KHK, Piszkesteto Station in Hungary.

This is the third discovery of Earth’s impactor made by Sárneczky. His previous discoveries were 2022 EB2 which impacted Earth’s atmosphere southwest of Jan Mayen island in the Arctic Ocean on March 21, 2022, and 2023 CX1 which impacted over the English Channel, between England and France on February 13, 2023.

Asteroid 2024 BX1 disintegrated just west of Berlin but it’s likely some pieces of it survived the entry.

The other 7 asteroids detected before impact are:

• 2008 TC3 – impacted over the Nubian desert, Sudan on October 7, 2008. Discovered on October 6, 2008. Diameter: approximately 4 m (13 feet); Mass approximately 80 tons.
• 2014 AA – impacted over the Atlantic Ocean, 3 000 km (1 864 miles) from Caracas, Venezuela on January 2, 2014. Discovered on January 1, 2014.  Diameter: approximately 3 m (9.8 feet); Mass approximately 40 tons.
• 2018 LA – impacted over the Botswana-South Africa border on June 2, 2018. Discovered on June 2, 2018. Diameter: approximately 3 m (9.8 feet); Mass approximately 40 tons.
• 2019 MO – impacted off the south coast of Puerto Rico, the Caribbean Sea on June 22, 2019. Discovered on June 22, 2019. Diameter: approximately 5 m (9.8 feet); Mass approximately 200 tons.
• 2022 EB5 – impacted southwest of Jan Mayen island in the Arctic Ocean at around 21:22 UTC on March 11, 2022. Discovered roughly two hours before impact. Diameter: approximately 3 m (9.8 feet).
• 2022 WJ1 – impacted over Niagara Falls at 08:27 UTC on November 19, 2022. Discovered at 04:53 UTC on November 19. Diameter between 0.5 and 1.2 m (1.6 – 3.9 feet).
• 2023 CX1 – impacted over the English Channel, between England and France at 02:59 UTC on February 13, 2024. Discovered about 3 hours before impact. Diameter between 0.8 to 1.8 m (2.6 to 5.9 feet).

Featured image credit: Michael Aye, All Planets (stillshot)