Scientists warn: An asteroid may hit the Earth on April 13, 2029

As we all know, there are many asteroids and meteorites in space near the earth. They have always been a problem that worries scientists. After all, there is nothing more terrifying than a huge space rock rushing towards the earth! Musk and NASA have previously issued dire warnings about a giant asteroid that could be about to destroy the Earth, so what exactly should we be worried about and what would happen if an asteroid hit the Earth? What should we do if such an object actually collides with us?

As the bell rings in 2022, NASA warns the world that potentially dangerous asteroids are preparing to fly towards the Earth. The agency reports that as many as five asteroids are heading towards our planet this month, but most people are indifferent because these asteroids are small and may be consumed in the atmosphere.

There are millions of asteroids in space, ranging in size from hundreds to several meters, said Nancy Chabot, chief planetary scientist at the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory. , they are all dangerous existences. Many asteroids have hit Earth in the past, and many more will hit our planet in the future. Currently, there are about 25,000 asteroids near the Earth. Asteroids at least 100 meters wide could cause devastating damage if they hit the Earth. While an asteroid of this size would not cause a global extinction event, only causing regional damage in the area, it could also destroy a city or even a small country, so it is a real threat.

Another example is the asteroid Apophis. As early as 2004, NASA discovered an asteroid Apophis with a diameter of about 370 meters. It orbits the sun every 324 days. circle, approaching Earth approximately once every ten years. Observations indicate it could hit Earth on Friday, April 13, 2029. Scientists rank the asteroid as having the highest impact risk, and NASA said the object passed within just 31,000 kilometers of our home star, a distance that makes it closer than most geostationary satellites. . So close that around 2 billion people can see it with the naked eye, so what if Apophis hit the Earth?

Scientists estimate that if Apophis hits the Earth at a normal speed in 2029, that is, about 20 kilometers per second, the consequences will be disastrous. At this speed and its mass, the average impact rate of this asteroid would release about 10 billion joules of energy, which is equivalent to the explosive yield of the global nuclear arsenal and about 100 times the energy of the Cheliabinx meteorite , 1 million times more energetic than the bomb dropped on Hiroshima. An impact of this scale is unimaginable. The worst case scenario is that if the impact occurs near a densely populated population center or a densely populated coastline, the devastating consequences will cause horrific effects such as strong earthquakes, strong thermal radiation and atmospheric shock waves, so basically A catastrophic event, but fortunately, there is a high probability that this historic event will not happen.

In early March last year, astronomers observed the asteroid Apophis and concluded that Apophis is unlikely to hit the earth in the next 100 years. Of course, this does not mean that it is impossible. If Apophis Fes changed its orbit due to special conditions during its operation, and the earth was in danger. Of course, Apophis is not the only near-Earth asteroid that has been observed through telescope lenses. NASA has also successfully discovered 27,323 asteroids that may endanger the Earth, of which less than 10,000 are over 140 meters, and even more than one Kilometers of asteroid, scientists suspect it was such an object that killed most of the dinosaurs 66 million years ago, and even SpaceX CEO Elon Musk has repeatedly expressed his concerns about asteroids.

In the early morning of November 24, 2021, the first planetary defense program Dart spacecraft in history was launched for the first time on the "Falcon 9" rocket launched from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California. Dart's mission is destined To stay in space for less than a year and crash all 550 of them, it was intended to provide planetary defense experts with the first real data on the deflection of space rocks, which could then be used by planetary defenders Feed the model and tell them how big and fast the threatening asteroid is, and whether humans might be strong enough to fend off it.

Of course, everything depends on the time between scientists discovering it and issuing a warning and the size of the asteroid. It takes precise time to deflect the asteroid from its original orbit, and sometimes the deflection even takes one above tasks, which increases the difficulty of the project. Regarding the threat of asteroids, Musk believes that the best solution is for humans to become a space civilization and a multi-planetary species. Simply put, it is to immigrate to Mars. He firmly believes that human civilization can be preserved by colonizing other planets such as Mars. If Earth was going to experience a catastrophic event, such as a large asteroid impact, then colonizing Mars would be the best option.

Of course, Musk’s spacex is also preparing for this plan. The spacecraft currently undergoing final testing is preparing to be launched this year. However, in my opinion, Musk’s idea has no impact on the current human race. It’s still too difficult to say. Human technology cannot support the survival of Mars. Maybe there will be a real turnaround by 2050. What do you think? Welcome to leave your opinion!