It said that astronomers have detected an asteroid that may strike the Earth in 2030.
2007-02-08 07:40:21 · 10 answers · asked by Mr_Sageseer 2 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Astronomy & Space
Yes. There is about a 1 in 50,000 chance that an asteroid will hit in 2027 I think. It is expected to pass at about 18,000 miles, which is INSIDE our communication satellite orbits. Here is a reliable source for you.
2007-02-08 09:59:07 · answer #1 · answered by goinpostaldave 1 · 0⤊ 0⤋
They've calculated the orbit more precisely, and determined that the asteroid will not hit in 2030 - it won't get any closer than 11 times the distance to the moon.
There's a chance it may hit in 2071, but I wouldn't sweat over that possibility. By then, we'll surely have the technology to prevent a collision - assuming it is indeed an asteroid in the first place. There's a chance that it's actually a booster rocket from the Apollo program; if so, it won't pose any threat even if it does strike Earth.
See the linked article for details.
2007-02-08 15:59:29 · answer #2 · answered by Bramblyspam 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Well an asteroid could strike the Earth in a much shorter time than that its the probability of such an event that you need to look at.
We are still discovering new objects that pass though the solar system, and the sky is a big place. But a lot of things have to happen to have an impact, but rest assured it's happened before and it will happen again.
But look at the confluence of events you would have to find an object that cross our known orbit and it would have to do so while our planet was in that exact spot. Then it would have to be big enough to not burn up in the atmosphere. You can win the lottery a lot easier.
2007-02-08 15:55:41 · answer #3 · answered by Brian K² 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
See
http://neo.jpl.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/neo_ca
You can monitor all the objects that have buzzed the earth or that will buzz the earth.
If you use options 60 days in the past and miss distance < 10 LD (Lunar distances), you will see that recently an asteroid passed within ONE lunar distance.
The fact that NASA compiles this list means that you are reasonably safe from surprise.
As yet there are no hits remotely on the cards. But that does not mean we can't get caught out by a surprise - those are the ones that can take us, the ones that escape discovery. But in general, they will be smaller ones, perhaps less than 1/2 km wide, which means we would not get wiped out, but only regional devastation.
Sleep well. It is a giant 3-D billiards hall out there.
2007-02-08 18:04:12 · answer #4 · answered by nick s 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Could you please tell us where you read this, so that we can read it also?
There are no known asteroids that are going to strike the Earth. But if the article says that there is 1 chance in a billion billion, then perhaps I will believe it. But I will not change anything in my life for a chance so small.
After all, there is a much much bigger chance I will be hit by lightning, or struck by a car, sometime in the next 25 years ...
2007-02-08 15:46:59 · answer #5 · answered by morningfoxnorth 6 · 2⤊ 0⤋
yeah its probably true!
just like:
global warming
the weapons of mass destruction
god
ghosts
unicorns
saddam heusein is dead
americans went to the moon
Aliens
a priest who isnt a pedofile
2007-02-08 15:51:59 · answer #6 · answered by Fukdupmind 2 · 0⤊ 1⤋
I think they have now worked out it is going to miss.
2007-02-08 15:45:59 · answer #7 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 1⤋
Doubt it. Seems shaky. How could they perdict it?
2007-02-08 15:47:37 · answer #8 · answered by ♥kistin14♥ 3 · 0⤊ 1⤋
"May" as in maybe, a long, long shot.
2007-02-08 16:21:30 · answer #9 · answered by Jerry P 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Possible - but NOT PROBABLE.
2007-02-08 15:43:43 · answer #10 · answered by Dr Dave P 7 · 2⤊ 0⤋