What would happen if a 1-km-wide meteorite hit the South Pole?

Answer 1

We would be renaming it as the South Hole.

Well, now seriously. Take a look at the web site in the reference. Is the Impac Effects calculator of the University of Arizona. If you play with the numbers, as I just did, you can get this result:

Your Inputs:
Distance from Impact: 100.00 km = 62.10 miles
Projectile Diameter: 1000.00 m = 3280.00 ft = 0.62 miles
Projectile Density: 8000 kg/m3
Impact Velocity: 17.00 km/s = 10.56 miles/s
Impact Angle: 45 degrees
Target Density: 2500 kg/m3
Target Type: Sedimentary Rock

Energy:
Energy before atmospheric entry: 6.05 x 1020 Joules = 1.45 x 105 MegaTons TNT
The average interval between impacts of this size somewhere on Earth during the last 4 billion years is 1.0 x 106years

Atmospheric Entry:
The projectile begins to breakup at an altitude of 14200 meters = 46500 ft
The projectile reaches the ground in a broken condition. The mass of projectile strikes the surface at velocity 17 km/s = 10.5 miles/s
The impact energy is 6.03 x 1020 Joules = 1.44 x 105MegaTons.
The broken projectile fragments strike the ground in an ellipse of dimension 1.45 km by 1.02 km

Major Global Changes:
The Earth is not strongly disturbed by the impact and loses negligible mass.
The impact does not make a noticeable change in the Earth's rotation period or the tilt of its axis.
The impact does not shift the Earth's orbit noticeably.

Crater Dimensions:

Crater shape is normal in spite of atmospheric crushing; fragments are not significantly dispersed.

Transient Crater Diameter: 14.7 km = 9.1 miles
Transient Crater Depth: 5.18 km = 3.22 miles

Final Crater Diameter: 20.9 km = 13 miles
Final Crater Depth: 0.739 km = 0.459 miles

The crater formed is a complex crater.
The volume of the target melted or vaporized is 3.79 km3 = 0.91 miles3
Roughly half the melt remains in the crater , where its average thickness is 22.5 meters = 73.7 feet

Thermal Radiation:

Time for maximum radiation: 0.996 seconds after impact

Visible fireball radius: 16.1 km = 10 miles
The fireball appears 36.6 times larger than the sun
Thermal Exposure: 2.71 x 107 Joules/m2
Duration of Irradiation: 220 seconds
Radiant flux (relative to the sun): 123

Effects of Thermal Radiation:

Clothing ignites

Much of the body suffers third degree burns

Newspaper ignites

Plywood flames

Deciduous trees ignite

Grass ignites

Seismic Effects:

The major seismic shaking will arrive at approximately 20 seconds.
Richter Scale Magnitude: 8.1
Mercalli Scale Intensity at a distance of 100 km:

VII. Damage negligible in buildings of good design and construction; slight to moderate in well-built ordinary structures; considerable damage in poorly built or badly designed structures; some chimneys broken.

VIII. Damage slight in specially designed structures; considerable damage in ordinary substantial buildings with partial collapse. Damage great in poorly built structures. Fall of chimneys, factory stacks, columns, monuments, walls. Heavy furniture overturned.


Ejecta:

The ejecta will arrive approximately 144 seconds after the impact.
Average Ejecta Thickness: 41.2 cm = 16.2 inches
Mean Fragment Diameter: 13.5 cm = 5.31 inches


Air Blast:

The air blast will arrive at approximately 303 seconds.
Peak Overpressure: 176000 Pa = 1.76 bars = 25 psi
Max wind velocity: 262 m/s = 586 mph
Sound Intensity: 105 dB (May cause ear pain)
Damage Description:


Multistory wall-bearing buildings will collapse.

Wood frame buildings will almost completely collapse.

Highway truss bridges will collapse.

Glass windows will shatter.

Up to 90 percent of trees blown down; remainder stripped of branches and leaves.

Answer 2

The impact would leave an enormous crater, sending dust and ice flying into the upper atmosphere. However, the destruction would probably not be apocalyptic in scale. For one, the asteroid that caused the extinction of the dinosaurs was several kilometers in diameter. For another, the South Pole is probably one of the safest places a meteor could hit us. It's a land continent, which means the impact would not cause any major tsunamis. It's far from any significant human habitation, minimizing immediate loss of life due to the heat and shockwave. Also, it's covered in a thick layer of ice, which will vaporize and decrease the amount of dust scattered into atmosphere, lessening the effect the impact would have on the amount of sunlight that reaches the Earth.

Answer 3

if a one km wide metiorite hit the south pole it would have such a great impact on the earth that it would finish the south pole on the spot and damage the earth a a great rate which could finish life on the earth and could also brak it in to half .

Answer 4

No matter where it hits on the earth, the impact will create severe dist ruction. If it hits the ocean, Tsunami wave will consume many places. If it hits the earth, the deep impact will cause large dust storm, vibration and heat, which can cause severe mass destruction. You need to wait for the actual hit to measure the level of destruction.

Answer 5

It would make a big crater, but there would be no global problems.

Answer 6

It would leave a pretty big crater.....and melt some ice.

Answer 7

It would make for some more tidal wave.