[ad_1]
Apophis 99942 is a near-Earth spacial orbiting rock of a width of 370 meters that continues to pose a destructive threat. NASA's initial observations in 2004 revealed a 2.7% probability that it could hit Earth in 2029. Other later developments then decided to exclude it, saying that it would go through a gravitational keyhole creating a future impact in 2036.
At the end of 2008, the probability that Apophis would pass through the gravitational keyhole was considered very low, excluding any impact by 2036.
However, the threat is not completely eliminated.
NASA later admitted, on February 21, 2013, that there were 150,000 chances on 1 of a direct impact with the Earth in 2068.
Jay Melosh, an American geophysicist specializing in impact craters, played the shocking scenario sure "Asteroid Trackers" from Amazon Prime.
In 2009, he said: "With Apophis, he is pretty well identified that we would know well where and when.
"If something like Apophis were to hit a city – say it happened on Boston – it could create a crater ten kilometers wide.
"Almost all of Boston's metropolis would be destroyed.
"The sky would turn bright red and you would feel the warmth like there were six suns in the sky.
"The clothes would ignite, you would suffer third-degree burns, it would be devastating."
however, Mr. Melosh, a graduate in physics and geology from Princeton University, revealed that humanity could be saved.
He added: "In the space, we would use a mirror in the manner of a magnifying glass.
"When we reach the asteroid, we start to vaporize material and, as it vaporizes, the asteroid is pushed in the other direction.
"What we would do with a real asteroid is to light until the rock vaporizes.
"All we have to do is change the speed of the asteroid by one centimeter per second.
"This little boost during the year will push him out of a collision course and save the Earth."
[ad_2]
Source link