Earlier today, we posted what we felt was the best video of Friday’s asteroid flyby. But then a friend on Facebook, Maksim Kakitsev, recommended this video showing the February 15 flyby of 2012 DA14, as it passed within 17,200 miles of Earth – inside the moon’s orbit and closer than some high-flying satellites. This one is beautiful, too, in its simplicity. Thank you, Maksim.
The video comes from astronomer Francois Colas, who is apparently with L’Observatoire de Paris (Paris Observatory). The setting is the Pic du Midi, a mountain in the French Pyrenees famous for its astronomical observatory, the Observatoire du Pic du Midi de Bigorre (Pic du Midi Observatory). You’ll find more details about the video on Vimeo.
More photos and video of asteroid 2012 DA14 during its February 15 flyby
Bottom line: Another wonderful video of the February 15, 2013 close-passing asteroid 2012 DA14 from astronomer Francois Colas on Vimeo.