Asteroid Misses Earth -- Film at 11

[H2Andy]

"A 100-foot diameter asteroid will pass within 26,500 miles of Earth on Thursday evening, the closest-ever brush on record by a space rock, NASA (news - web sites) astronomers said.

The asteroid's close flyby, first spied late Monday, poses no risk, NASA astronomers stressed."

here's the story: http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=624&e=2&u=/ap/asteroid_flyby
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ok... but what IF it had been aimed smack at us?

what could we have done in 72 hours?

food for thought...

 

[gj62]

One of that size *should* pretty much disintegrate in the atmosphere. Of course, a bigger one would pose bigger problems, but probably be detected sooner. At least I choose to believe that in order to sleep. Of course, a big enough one, regardless of when it was detected, well, that's what movies are made of...

 

[H2Andy]

oh good point about it burning up...

do you know what the biggest size we can expect to burn up would be?
(i.e. how big do they have to be before they are a problem?)

 

[gj62]

Not quite the exact info you are looking for, but some interesting reading nonetheless...

http://www.space.com/scienceastronomy/solarsystem/asteroids-ez.html

 

[gj62]

Here's another link that gives more of the answer you are looking for...

http://www.windows.ucar.edu/tour/link=/kids_space/deepimpact.html&edu=high

 

[H2Andy]

hmmm....

so 300 to 1500 feet "could" penetrate the atmosphere, and a quarter mile
is enough to create a "nuclear winter."

thanks for the info

 

[MikeFerrara]

"A 100-foot diameter asteroid will pass within 26,500 miles of Earth on Thursday evening, the closest-ever brush on record by a space rock, NASA (news - web sites) astronomers said.

The asteroid's close flyby, first spied late Monday, poses no risk, NASA astronomers stressed."

here's the story: http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=624&e=2&u=/ap/asteroid_flyby
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ok... but what IF it had been aimed smack at us?

what could we have done in 72 hours?

food for thought...

All we have to do is send Bruce Willis and his buddies up there. They sling shot around the moon and come up behind the thing and land on it. Then all they have to do is drill a deep hole and drop a nuke in.

Simple.

 

[Tractor Tom]

Like I didn't have enough to keep me awake at night, now I have to worry about being vaporized by a 300-1500 foot Asteroid penetrating the atmosphere and causing a nuclear winter.

I thought all of that was just Hollywood hype....

 

[H2Andy]

Like I didn't have enough to keep me awake at night, now I have to worry about being vaporized by a 300-1500 foot Asteroid penetrating the atmosphere and causing a nuclear winter.

don't mention it. that's what i'm here for.

but note that Mike is confident Bruce Willis can save us.

 

[UWSojourner]

... now I have to worry about being vaporized by a 300-1500 foot Asteroid penetrating the atmosphere and causing a nuclear winter.

But ... you won't have to worry about global warming. Everything's a tradeoff.