Don't look up, Piggies! It's Asteroid Day! 🐹 🤍 🖤 🤍 ☄️ ☄️ ☄️ 💥 💥 💥 🥕

Ka-boom!

Don't worry, no asteroids are in today's space forecast... but there's a lot more of them out there than we once knew! And don't even get me started about the 2029 Apophis flyby...

Why does a family of big flying rocks get its own special day, you ask?

Well... one of the most famous asteroid events occurred on June 30, 1908, when an asteroid (or perhaps a small comet) exploded high over the remote Siberian wilderness near the Tunguska River. The blast flattened an estimated 80 million trees across more than 800 square miles of forest. Fortunately, because the area was so sparsely populated, there were very few human (and, one hopes, piggy) casualties. Scientists still study the Tunguska Event today because it remains the largest asteroid impact in recorded history that occurred without leaving a crater. Hmmm... some pigs are suspicious.

Big booms notwithstanding, astronomers at least give us a laugh with some wonderfully ridiculous asteroid names.

There are asteroids honoring every member of the legendary British comedy troupe Monty Python: John Cleese, Terry Gilliam, Terry Jones, Eric Idle, Michael Palin, and Graham Chapman.

Even the world's greatest fictional detective got in on the act with asteroid (5040) Sherlock, along with (5048) Moriarty and (5050) Doctorwatson.

Apparently, if you become sufficiently famous—or sufficiently silly—the Solar System may eventually reserve a little rock in your honor.

Nudge, nudge... wheek, wheek... say no more! 🤪☄️🐹

Wheek! Wheek!