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Cerebus06

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  1. The Chelyabinsk meteor has been suggested as an example of the potential of asteroids not being detected until just prior to impacting or grazing the earth. In this case, it was - to quote a Business Insider article in 2013 - "... because it came out of the daytime sky. These are nearly impossible to find ahead of time because telescopes can only spot asteroids during the night." (quoted from http://www.businessinsider.com/heres-why-astronomers-did-not-detect-the-russia-meteor-ahead-of-time-2013-2). First, is this article's claim about the daytime sky as accurate as the article suggests? My primary question, related to this, is whether or not it would be possible for a rock big enough to cause an extinction level event to remain undetectable until, at most, just days before impact. If this is indeed possible, what are the possibilities that could cause it? For example, perhaps a highly elliptical orbit perpendicular to the orbital plane of the solar system? Or maybe the asteroid is composed of rock / metals that are dark enough that its albedo wasn't bright enough to be noticed until it was close? I deeply appreciate anyone's input.
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