Asteroid May Strike Mars in January
December 24th 2007 07:09
According to scientists at the Near Earth Object Program at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory believe a newly discovered asteroid has a 1 in 75 chance of hitting Mars on January 30.
The asteroid, known as 2007, estimated diameter is about 100 metres if it does strike Mars on January 30, it would cause an explosion equivalent to several megatonnes of TNT. Asteroid 2007 WD5 is about half-way between Earth and Mars and closing the distance at a speed of about 27,900 miles per hour.
There may be another possibility that it may not be an asteroid just part of a rouge space craft, well it my speculation here.
The likely impact would be on the threshold of visibility from the largest of Earth's telescopes, but its effects would readily be seen by probes orbiting the Red Planet such as the European Space Agency's Mars Express. It will not be visible with domestic telescopes or the naked eye.
The odds are extremely unusual yet astronomers frequently work with really long odds when tracking threatening asteroids. The asteroid is going to fly by Mars and most likely going to miss, but there's a possibility of an impact
Halfway between Earth and Mars, the asteroid, known as 2007 WD5, was discovered in late November (2007)and initially estimated to have a 1 in 350 chance of making impact. However, as new observations were made, the odds increased and scientists expect them to grow even more next month.
2007 WD5 is similar in size to the object believed to have impacted the Tunguska in Siberia in 1908, devastating a huge area of land. The Tunguska blast unleashed equivalent energy to a 15-megaton nuclear bomb, wiping out over 60 million trees. An impact by 2007 WD5 could create a crater on Mars roughly equal to the size of one in Arizona known as "Meteor Crater."
In 1994, fragments of the comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 smacked into Jupiter, creating a series of overlapping fireballs in space. Astronomers have yet to witness an asteroid impact with another planet.
If a Mars impact does occur, it will most likely be near the equator, an area that the robotic rover, Opportunity, has been exploring. The rover, itself, is not in any danger because it is outside of the possible impact area.
On Tuesday, the planet was just 88 million km away, the closest it will be until 2016.
Mars is currently the brightest object in the night sky after the Moon.
Podcast available Here: Download Podcast
The asteroid, known as 2007, estimated diameter is about 100 metres if it does strike Mars on January 30, it would cause an explosion equivalent to several megatonnes of TNT. Asteroid 2007 WD5 is about half-way between Earth and Mars and closing the distance at a speed of about 27,900 miles per hour.
There may be another possibility that it may not be an asteroid just part of a rouge space craft, well it my speculation here.
The likely impact would be on the threshold of visibility from the largest of Earth's telescopes, but its effects would readily be seen by probes orbiting the Red Planet such as the European Space Agency's Mars Express. It will not be visible with domestic telescopes or the naked eye.
The odds are extremely unusual yet astronomers frequently work with really long odds when tracking threatening asteroids. The asteroid is going to fly by Mars and most likely going to miss, but there's a possibility of an impact
Halfway between Earth and Mars, the asteroid, known as 2007 WD5, was discovered in late November (2007)and initially estimated to have a 1 in 350 chance of making impact. However, as new observations were made, the odds increased and scientists expect them to grow even more next month.
2007 WD5 is similar in size to the object believed to have impacted the Tunguska in Siberia in 1908, devastating a huge area of land. The Tunguska blast unleashed equivalent energy to a 15-megaton nuclear bomb, wiping out over 60 million trees. An impact by 2007 WD5 could create a crater on Mars roughly equal to the size of one in Arizona known as "Meteor Crater."
If a Mars impact does occur, it will most likely be near the equator, an area that the robotic rover, Opportunity, has been exploring. The rover, itself, is not in any danger because it is outside of the possible impact area.
On Tuesday, the planet was just 88 million km away, the closest it will be until 2016.
Mars is currently the brightest object in the night sky after the Moon.
Podcast available Here: Download Podcast
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