2011 MD June 27, 2011

Forget about the Men in Black. Somebody needs to send the Men in White Coats to haul me away before I see one more thing on my computer screen that tells me I’m living in some kind of alternate Universe where everything makes perfect sense and I totally get what’s going on. We’re not even up to the July 1 “Antidote for Chaotic Node Syndrome” Partial Solar Eclipse yet.

See UPDATE at the bottom of this page.

Where do I start? There is so much to talk about. I aspire to become a Master of Brevity. But folks who know me will freely tell you that particular goal of mine is just never going to happen in this lifetime. So I guess I’ll just pick a starting point and let ‘er rip.

My women’s group participated as an observer in the Project Camelot video conference on Comet Elenin on Friday. The levels and layers of our identification with the subjects under discussion went very high and deep.

I started a list of conversation topics to which I would have had a response. About an hour into it I gave up. My list was as long as the program itself. So let me roll that carpet back up and just start with the first event on my To Do List and see where that takes us.

We’ll start with the 2011 MD event scheduled to culminate tomorrow on June 27, 2011.

2011 MD is a classification Apollo NEO (Near Earth Object).  The information being put out on it can be a little confusing, frankly.  Here it is, see what you think:

ASTEROID FLYBY: Newly-discovered asteroid 2011 MD will pass only 12,000 kilometers (7,500 miles) above Earth’s surface on Monday June 27 at about 9:30 a.m. EDT.

[New information from Space.com whom I would tend to trust: The asteroid will make its closest approach at 1:14 p.m. EDT (1714 GMT) on June 27 and will pass just over 7,500 miles (12,000 kilometers) above the Earth's surface, NASA officials say. At that particular moment, the asteroid — which scientists have named 2011 MD — will be sailing high off the coast of Antarctica, almost 2,000 miles (3,218 km) south-southwest of South Africa.]

NASA analysts say there is no chance the space rock will strike Earth. Nevertheless, the encounter is so close that Earth’s gravity will sharply alter the asteroid’s trajectory:

At closest approach, 2011 MD will pass in broad daylight over the southern Atlantic Ocean near the coast of Antarctica. As the asteroid recedes from Earth, it will pass through the zone of geosynchronous satellites. The chances of a collision with a satellite or manmade space junk are extremely small, albeit not zero.

Judging from the brightness of the asteroid, it measures only 5 to 20 meters in diameter. According to JPL’s Near Earth Object Program office, one would expect an object of this size to come this close to Earth about every 6 years on average. For a brief time, it will be bright enough to be seen even with a medium-sized backyard telescope. [observing tips] [3D orbit]

From Wikipedia (click on some of the links, especially the footnotes):

2011 MD is a near-Earth object, presumed to be an Apollo asteroid, which is bound to pass relatively close to Earth’s surface at a distance of about 12,000 kilometers (7,500 mi), roughly 32 times closer than the Moon, about 13:00 EDT on June 27, 2011.^[1][2][3][4]

Since the object is going to be too close to the sun in the sky during the event, observing it will be possible only for a brief time a few hours prior to the closest approach. Backyard astronomers will be able to observe it from places as varied as Australia, southern Africa, and the Americas, as long as one has a good telescope and the proper coordinates.^[3]

It was discovered on June 22, 2011 by LINEAR‘s pair of robotic telescopes in New Mexico and, according to rough estimates, its length ranges somewhere between 10 and 45 meters (30 and 150 ft).^[5]

Dr. Emily Baldwin, of Astronomy Now magazine, is quoted as saying there is no threat of collision and, in case it actually entered the Earth’s atmosphere (which is not the case this time), it would “mostly burn up in a brilliant fireball, possibly scattering a few meteorites.”^[5]

References

1. ^ Don Yeomans & Paul Chodas. “Bend it Like Beckham! Small Asteroid to Whip Past Earth on June 27, 2011 “, NASA/JPL Near-Earth Object Program Office, 23 June 2011. Retrieved 25 June 2011
2. ^ NASA JPL. “JPL Small-Body Database Browser (2011 MD)”. http://ssd.jpl.nasa.gov/sbdb.cgi?sstr=2011%20MD;cad=1. Retrieved 2011-06-26. 
3. ^ ^{a b} Tony Flanders. “Asteroid To Buzz Earth Monday, June 27th”. http://www.skyandtelescope.com/observing/highlights/124430479.html. Retrieved 2011-06-04. 
4. ^ Tony Flanders. “Is Asteroid 2011 MD Space Junk?”. http://www.skyandtelescope.com/community/skyblog/observingblog/124484634.html. Retrieved 2011-06-24. 
5. ^ ^{a b} Paul Sutherland. “Incoming! Another asteroid to skim by”. http://www.skymania.com/wp/2011/06/incoming-new-asteroid-will-scrape-past.html. Retrieved 2011-06-24.

If your ears are open you will hear key numbers being chanted.  Personally I find the concept of an Asteroid whipping around us, threading the needle between Earth and Moon, very exciting.  Especially in the narrow context of the upcoming July 1, 2011 Partial Solar Eclipse (←do see the Astronomologer’s report on that event).  

Now when you come back from that (it’s essential you go there first), take a look at this (I would LOVE to copy/paste it but for now you’ll just have to follow the link:)

• Pasquale Tricarico, Research Scientist, Planetary Science Institute.  You will want to view this page — do not miss it.

Are we giving you enough to think about yet?  Don’t touch that dial!

Apollo Object 2011 MD

For 13th Dynamic / Ophiuchus-centric insight on the subject of Apollo (and let us not forget Apollo was one of several Greek Gods whose domain included Medicine), visit the e-Release of my [sorry - it's unfinished] book The Quintessential Ophiuchus on our sister site Startistics.

Uh oh!  Who is this I see risen in the East while 2011 MD goes whizzing by?  My goodness.  What a total shocker.

2011 MD Apollo object on 06-27-2011 at epicenter of 07/01/2011 Partial Solar Eclipse

Here is the JPL Horizons Ephemeris data through July 4th.  Hercules is the Constellation north of Ophiuchus; they are joined at the head.

*******************************************************************************

Ephemeris / WWW_USER Sun Jun 26 15:10:54 2011 Pasadena, USA      / Horizons   

*******************************************************************************

Target body name: (2011 MD)                       {source: JPL#13}

Center body name: Earth (399)                     {source: DE405}

Center-site name: GEOCENTRIC

*******************************************************************************

Start time      : A.D. 2011-Jun-26 00:00:00.0000 UT     

Stop  time      : A.D. 2011-Jul-04 00:00:00.0000 UT     

Step-size       : 1440 minutes

*******************************************************************************

Initial FK5/J2000.0 heliocentric ecliptic osculating elements (AU, DAYS, DEG):

  EPOCH=  2455740.5 ! 2011-Jun-28.00 (CT)         Residual RMS= .90263        

    EC= .1312074860353164  QR= 1.015117063330212  TP= 2455748.636260765       

    OM= 275.6352147493035  W= 8.557662526623346   IN= 4.534821838956765       

Asteroid physical parameters (KM, SEC, rotational period in hours):

    GM= n.a.               RAD= n.a.              ROTPER= n.a.                

    H= 28.121              G= .150                B-V= n.a.                   

                           ALBEDO= n.a.           STYP= n.a.                  

*******************************************************************************

 Date__(UT)__HR:MN     R.A.__(a-apparent)__DEC Cnst    ObsEcLon    ObsEcLat

***************************************************************************

$$SOE

 2011-Jun-26 00:00     16 33 13.37 +35 58 23.8  Her 236.7498306  56.9333637

 2011-Jun-27 00:00     16 09 45.33 +29 17 43.4  CrB 231.9055248  49.1526820

 2011-Jun-28 00:00     01 11 47.99 +36 57 40.4  And  31.4600149  26.9826266

 2011-Jun-29 00:00     23 52 51.02 +51 04 26.9  Cas  24.8952896  46.1842063

 2011-Jun-30 00:00     23 30 40.40 +53 29 38.5  Cas  22.9665635  50.1455046

 2011-Jul-01 00:00     23 19 10.53 +54 33 06.3  Cas  21.9239557  52.0271602

 2011-Jul-02 00:00     23 11 53.95 +55 09 06.0  Cas  21.2374768  53.1596936

 2011-Jul-03 00:00     23 06 47.38 +55 32 12.5  Cas  20.7351070  53.9257051

 2011-Jul-04 00:00     23 02 58.09 +55 48 06.3  Cas  20.3425771  54.4804951

$$EOE

*******************************************************************************

CrB of course is Corona Borealis, the Northern Crown. The Northern Crown is the constellation over the head of Ophiuchus’s serpent, Serpens Caput.  Here is another shameless plug for Mark Amaru Pinkham’s book The Return of the Serpents of Wisdom. 

Is there some sort of Serpent of Wisdom Crown Chakra activation going on here?  That very well could be, and of course we have been talking about activating the Planetary Goddess’s Crown Chakra at Antarctica.   It all seems to be making sense in context.

[Post Script 06/29/2011: I just noticed something.  How can the Asteroid be streaking across the sky at Antarctica when the JPL Ephemeris has it coming out of Corona Borealis, a northern constellation that isn't going to rise or set at Antarctica because it's too far north?  Even Constellation Andromeda is too far north at the latitude and longitude of the coast of Antarctica I plotted.  Hmmm.  Maybe it's my location that is off.  But I rather doubt my location is off THAT much!  Comments, anyone?]

From where I sit

Near Earth Object - Eros | photo by NASA

There are no good guys or bad guys anymore.  Just a lack of fundamental understanding and a lot of confusion as the healing and wisdom operatives begin to take hold.  Think of how your body feels while new medicines are taking hold.  Think how woozy you are after an operation.  Same thing.

At this juncture I should probably discuss a case on point so that we can see how far off base we have gotten on this planet as a result of the divorce of science and spirit way-back-when.  What I’m about to share will give you some insight into relative predictability, but it will not explain the inevitable absolute unpredictability of things that must naturally ensue as a function of the Intelligent Universe having to consider a state of micro-involvement necessary.  If you could figure everything out, if “control” were at all truly possible, what would that imply, especially given the current state of silly human thinking?  Right.  So forget it for now and let’s take a look at the proof of the pudding. 

September 11, 2001

Most folks do not realize that the old astral grid is dead.  Their understanding of good and bad is backwards now. I’m thinking of Richard Hoagland’s insistance that the effect of the September 11, 2001 cosmic cause energy was supposed to be very positive but it was hijacked by the bad guys.

Let me show you something.

What I’m showing you is that astrology is dead.  We were told that after the Harmonic Convergence in 1987 frequencies were going to be changing and stuff was going to start not working.  We’re there.

Anyone who tracked the transit of Mars through Scorpius and Ophiuchus along with me (I think there were none) were biting their fingernails the whole way once Mars dipped down to parallel Antares.  There was quite a lot of time to prepare and engage the frequencies needed to make the events of 09/11/2001 happen.  The Mars transit had three legs to it: two direct and one retrograde.  In the retrograde leg it would have been possible to derail what was coming but our own government either did not pick up on the clues (ala Pearl Harbor Day) or they did not want to derail it because there was some other plan in play.  I’m talking about the one shown to us in Michael Moore’s movie Fahrenheit 911.  I’m not a catastrophobic myself, but I do find myself having to call it as I see it from time to time.  I am told by a reliable source that some people need to hear what I have to say whether they like it or not.

Most people don’t.

Once Mars turned direct, the countdown started and I don’t know about you, but I felt it to the bone.  In the interests of remaining brief and to-the-point I’ll leave my story out of it. At event time Jupiter was posited between the Gemini Twins.  God of Earth & Sky in a mutable air sign — not a good day for air travel since orthodox Jupiter is in Detriment in its opposite sign.  Meanwhile over in Jupiter’s Home Stars of Sagittarius Fire, the Thunderbolts were at the ready.  Anyone familiar with the Qabalistic Tarot can confirm the Sensory Gateway for the Sagittarius tarot key is “Anger.”  Need I say more?

I won’t attempt to moralize.  There is no place for moralizing in a world that is being run into the ground.  The fact is that this catastrophe brought a lot of people together in a good way.  It also shed light on some problems and opened the door wider to true global sharing and shouldering of responsibility.  It may be argued this community love and sharing of responsibility did not persist but I say again, when the healer is healing, a lot of bubbling and fizzing goes on while the peroxide is poured over the dirty wound.

And we can expect that trend to continue until humanity begins to take responsibility for itself which, yes it is true, means more people need to wake up.

It’s a journey, not a destination.  The process needs to be trusted.

UPDATE 06/28/2011

ASTEROID FLYBY: Asteroid 2011 MD flew past Earth on Monday, June 27th. At closest approach the ~10-meter space rock was only 12,000 kilometers (7,500 miles) above the planet’s surface. NASA analysts said there was no chance it would strike Earth, and indeed it didn’t.

Astronomers around the world monitored the flyby. Using a remotely-controled telescope in Cerro Tololo, Chile, Joe Pollock of Appalachian State University obtained this light curve:

“The brightness variations are due to the asteroid’s spin,” explains Pollock. “It appears to be rotating with a 23.3 or 11.6 minute period.”

UPDATE: A dramatic video recorded by Andre Paquette of Ottawa, Canada, shows the brightness of the asteroid oscillating as it races among the stars. “My light curve is a good match to Cerro Tololo’s,” says Paquette.

more flyby movies and images: from Jure Skvarc of the Črni Vrh Observatory in Slovenia; from Marco Langbroek of Sierra Stars Obs., California; from Efrain Morales Rivera of Aguadilla, Puerto Rico; from Nick Howes of Siding Spring Australia; from Rafael Ferrando of the Observatory Pla d’Arguines in Segorbe, Spain; from Libor Vyskocil of the Observatory Upice in the Czech Republic; from Nick James of Chelmsford, UK; from Rolando Ligustri of Talmassons Observatory, Italy;

Update credit: www.spaceweather.com