Nasa preparing for arrival of ‘God of Chaos’ asteroid Apophis
A monster asteroid named after an Egyptian God of Chaos is due to travel so close to Earth that billions of people will be able to see it with the naked eye.
The 340-metre wide behemoth is called Apophis and is on a path which brings the rock within such a short distance of our planet’s surface that Nasa once feared it was going to hit us.
Luckily, subsequent calculations showed the object was going to miss us and pass within just 19,000 miles of our planet’s surface – a hair’s breadth in cosmic terms.
If Apophis did hit a city like London, it would wipe out millions of people and create a crater roughly three miles wide, but our species would probably survive.
It’s only when space rocks are half a mile wide or larger that they start to pose an existential threat to humanity because larger objects could throw so much dust and debris into the air that sunlight is blocked so plants across the planet can no longer grow.
In a piece of cosmic irony, Apophis will fly past on Friday, April 13, 2029
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Last edited by Tiny; 20-08-19 at 02:21 PM.
Cheers, Tiny
"You can lead a person to knowledge, but you can't make them think? If you're not part of the solution, you're part of the problem.
The information is out there; you just have to let it in."
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Thanks Tiny. I can't hear the name Apophis without thinking of the character in the old Stargate SyFy series.
lsemmens (20-08-19)
Explanation of said event by Neil deGrasse Tyson. It's form 2013 but still good & reasonably humorous.
Cheers, Tiny
"You can lead a person to knowledge, but you can't make them think? If you're not part of the solution, you're part of the problem.
The information is out there; you just have to let it in."
I remember when Halley's Comet was predicted to go scorching passed earth.
Then it came.......
If u want to go on an expedition get a Land Rover, if u want to come home from an expedition get a Landcruiser!
Still should be interesting. Must get myself a telescope to watch it "hit".
I'm out of my mind, but feel free to leave a message...
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