NASA warns two asteroids hurtling closer to Earth than the MOON in 20,000mph

Discussion in 'Science' started by cerberus, Sep 9, 2018.

  1. cerberus

    cerberus Well-Known Member Past Donor

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  2. WillReadmore

    WillReadmore Well-Known Member

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    If these had hit the Earth it would be a show, but no real damage, I think.

    The larger issue is that they were discovered 3 days before they arrived! And, one came within the altitude of our highest satellites orbiting earth. GPS satellites are at about 22,000 miles, because at that height they can orbit earth at the same rate that earth turns on its axis. The asteroid came in at about 20,000 miles.

    For us to have time do do something about it (change its course, or whatever) we would need something like 10 or 20 years to determine a course of action (by determining its makeup, etc.) and design a mission to the asteroid.

    While Earth gains more than 50,000 tons per year, it's mostly the size of dust. But, the Tunguska event in about 1908 leveled nearly 800 square miles of forest. Had that been over a populated area it would have been seriously bad news.
     
  3. Moonglow

    Moonglow Well-Known Member

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  4. cerberus

    cerberus Well-Known Member Past Donor

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    There are probably asteroids passing close by us every day - what's so special about these two? [​IMG]
     
    Last edited: Sep 10, 2018
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  5. HonestJoe

    HonestJoe Well-Known Member Past Donor

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    A slow “news” day at the Daily Star? Their hacks probably trawled Twitter for something they could spin up in to a none story with a bit of copy-paste and a cheap rent-a-quote. You should really stop assuming that something being reported in the tabloids is any kind of indication of its relative importance or significance. :cool:
     
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  6. WillReadmore

    WillReadmore Well-Known Member

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    One of them came inside the altitude of our GPS and other geosynchronous orbit satellites.

    And, they weren't found more than 3 days in advance.

    While a collision would be highly unlikely, it's still an indication that we do have a vulnerability. A larger asteroid could be a real issue, especially since we couldn't do anything about it for a long time.

    It's one of those things that is super low likelihood but super high potential cost. And, we're only doing a little bit about it.
     
  7. tecoyah

    tecoyah Well-Known Member Past Donor

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    It is important to inform people of these close calls in order to be transparent and credible when one actually gets here. I for one am pleased NASA keeps an eye out for us at all so I will know before the planet gets its a$$ kicked. At lest I can have a party and lots of sex.
     
  8. cerberus

    cerberus Well-Known Member Past Donor

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    For an asteroid to do any significant damage it would have to be almost the size of planet Earth itself, which means the impact would at least knock us off our axis, or more likely pulverize this entire planet. That's why the theory that 'an asteroid destroyed the dinosaurs' is a load of BS.
     
  9. waltky

    waltky Well-Known Member

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    Granny says we need to figger out...

    ... which o' the aliens is lobbin' space rocks at us...

    ... so's the Donald can give the order to nuke `em.
     
  10. tecoyah

    tecoyah Well-Known Member Past Donor

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    It is painfully clear that you have no idea what you are typing about....here is a little clue for you though you will probably say it is CGI.
     
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  11. truth and justice

    truth and justice Well-Known Member

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    So for a bullet to do any significant damage to you it would have to be almost the size of you?
     
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  12. HonestJoe

    HonestJoe Well-Known Member Past Donor

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    I disagree, I think he knows exactly what he is doing. :(
     
  13. tecoyah

    tecoyah Well-Known Member Past Donor

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    While he may indeed be skilled at trolling for bottom feeders he obviously does not know sportfishing.
     
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  14. cerberus

    cerberus Well-Known Member Past Donor

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    I the case of a bullet, it doesn't have a general area of impact, it has a relatively miniscule one; and the 'significant damage' would be to an internal organ. You're comparing apples with oranges?
     
  15. UK_archer

    UK_archer Well-Known Member

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    What do you mean by a general area on impact? In your own words 'it has a relatively miniscule one', in relation to the Earth the asteroid also has a a relatively miniscule area of impact. It's all about transfer of energy, in the case mostly kinetic of the asteroid. The most devastating non-local effects are what happens after the impact.

    Out of interest just what did happen to the dinosaurs in your opinion?
     
  16. tecoyah

    tecoyah Well-Known Member Past Donor

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    As with an asteroid, with a bullet the size is less important than velocity...Meteor Crater in AZ was made by an impactor less than 1/100 the size of its hole and the Dinosaur killer was about 6 miles in size but made a crater 200 miles wide.
     
  17. tecoyah

    tecoyah Well-Known Member Past Donor

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    They died in the flood after Jesus rode one to wrangle his herds.
     
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  18. One Mind

    One Mind Well-Known Member Past Donor

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    That isn't what scientists think. Do the physics, for I think the forces involved, the damage from a sizable rock or metal contradict what you just uttered. We are quite good at figuring out forces and damage, depending upon the speed, mass, and trajectory, of one of these things.

    You are now dismissing hard math. And that is just nuts.
     
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  19. tecoyah

    tecoyah Well-Known Member Past Donor

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    Had the Dinosaur killer hit ten minutes later it would have impacted deep ocean instead of shallows and the dinosaurs might have survived. We probably wouldn't even be here.
     
  20. cerberus

    cerberus Well-Known Member Past Donor

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    I can't describe it any differently than I have above.

    Some kind of disease killed them off.
     
  21. cerberus

    cerberus Well-Known Member Past Donor

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    Well they wouldn't would they! They make their living (if you're talking about 'space' scientists) by lying, hyperbole, and pretending they know stuff the ignorance masses don't. Real scientists are too busy concentrating their efforts and knowledge for the benefits to mankind rather than wasting it daily issuing meaningless and irrelevant speculations and ridiculous theories in pursuit of their lucrative and secure chosen career.** I still believe that an asteroid half the size of this planet would knock it off its axis, or result in cataclysmic natural events.

    ** I was watching University Challenge on tv the other night, and of the two teams of 4, (ie 8 persons), two of them said they were 'reading' astrophysics, and I thought 'Smart lads. That's where it's at these days, and it sure beats working for a living!'
     
    Last edited: Sep 12, 2018
  22. The Don

    The Don Well-Known Member

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    I don't think anyone doubts that an asteroid half the size of the planet hitting the Earth would be cataclysmic. Indeed, it's one theory of how the moon was formed:

    https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Giant-impact_hypothesis

    What you seem to deny is that an asteroid a tiny fraction of the size of the Earth impacting could also be an extinction level event.

    Why do you have reading in scare quotes ? It's the standard way of saying what subject you're taking.

    If they stay in astrophyics, they can look forward to decades of being underpaid and academic infighting. Even if I had been rather better at physics than I was, I wouldn't have considered a career in academia or all the tea in China - far too much hard work for far too little reward.
     
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  23. cerberus

    cerberus Well-Known Member Past Donor

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    Give me an example please?

    What are 'scare quotes'? I've never heard of them.

    That's at the grunts level - get a few more rungs higher up the ladder and the world is your oyster if you work in the space industry.
     
    Last edited: Sep 12, 2018
  24. The Don

    The Don Well-Known Member

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    An example of you denying that an asteroid significantly smaller than the Earth wouldn't cause significant damage, or evidence that a comparatively small asteroid could cause an extinction level event ?

    Oh, well played ;)

    You have literally no idea what you're talking about.

    In the UK, even senior academics are poorly paid.

    I'm not even sure what you mean by "space industry". If it's the construction of satellites and so on then that's engineering, and not particularly well paid. The idea of an astrophysicist diving into a pool of gold coins like Scrooge McDuck exists only in your mind.
     
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  25. cerberus

    cerberus Well-Known Member Past Donor

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    That's a double negative and I never use double negatives. And I have never said a small asteroid could cause an extinction event. WTF are you talking about?

    What was?

    That's a relative statement, therefore is meaningless.

    The manufacture of satellites and rocketry are a part of (as you say) the scientific industrial complex; in other words not involved with deep space exploration.

    I don't have the faintest idea what you mean by that.
     

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