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A 30-50 meter-wide asteroid just passed seven times closer to us than the moon, glowing so bright you could see it through a cloud. If it had hit the ocean, it would have tsunamied.
The Sydney Morning Herald says that if it had been headed toward a populated part of the world, we would have had 24 hours to act and evacuate. Sky and Telescope says that it was about twice the altitude of our communications satellites.
5) Comet Hyakutake. Now we're getting into civilization-threatening territory. At 2 kilometers in diameters, this comet only got within about 40 lunar distances to Earth in 1996. Compared ot our other close calls, that's pretty comfortable, but considr this: it was discovered less than two months before its closest pass. Had it been on a collision course with Earth there's almost nothing we could've done other than brace for the millions dead, massive climate disruption, crop failure, 500-foot high tsunami...you get the idea.
Any figures on the damage it would have done if it actually hit a populated area?
The Tunguska event asteroid (as scientists believe now) was smaller than this one and it was 5 megatons
Everyone in the inner two circles dies immediately. Furthermore, the ground in these circles is flattened, even with an airburst (similar to Tunguska, which did not hit the ground) to rock. Everything else in the outer circles probably dies afterwards. I dunno, 5 million people. If the thing did London I could give you better population estimates.
But the bottom line is something like this could hit the ocean and noone would die whatsoever. And the chances of that are extremely likely compared to it hitting NYC.
Getting killed by asteroid is incredibly unlikely, even if it hits the Earth. There are impacts every year, all over the place. Even more hit the atmosphere.
As someone said, the Moon gets hit all the fucking time. So do we. But the weather systems, erosion and atmosphere hide the craters extremely well.
Anything over, I dunno, a mile wide kills us all mind you. No matter where it hits.
I address you tonight not as the President of the United States, not as a leader of a country, but as a citizen of humanity. We are faced with the very gravest of challenges. The Bible calls this day "Armageddon"-the end of all things. And yet, for the first time in the history of the planet, a species has the technology to prevent its own extinction. All of you praying with us need to know that everything that can be done to prevent this disaster is being called into service.
The human thirst for excellence, knowledge, every step up the ladder of science, every adventurous reach into space, all of our combined technologies and imaginations, even the wars that we've fought have provided us the tools to wage this terrible battle. Through all of the chaos that is our history, through all of the wrong and the discord, through all of the pain and the suffering, through all of our times, there is one thing that has nourished our souls, and elevated our species above its origins, and that is our courage.
The dreams of an entire planet are focused tonight on those fourteen brave souls traveling into the heavens. And may we, citizens the world over, see these events through. God speed, and good luck to you.
everyone knows that if an asteroid were to hit it would hit LA and the only thing left would be the Hollywood sign because otherwise you wouldn't have a frame of reference for your film and I lost my train of thought
Posts
still holding out on tunguska being tesla doing thangs
Shiiiiiiiiiiit
(armageddons, I mean, not asteroids specifically)
if armageddon couldn't be pluralized before, it sure is now
I imagine, depending on how hard it hit, it would eventually deviate from its orbit enough to crash into us, yeah
and then we're proper fucked
have you looked at it
if it hit it hard enough to crack, causing pieces to fall to Earth, then it would be bad
Controls tides and whatnot too so that'd get screwed up
haven't laughed so hard this whole week
There's nothing to destroy on the moon so it's not like we'd lose a civilization.
Mother fucker don't you watch yu gi oh
I'm not really into pokemon.
Oh wait
Those are hemorrhoids.
I wouldn't want earth hit with a giant Hemorrhoid either.
Hamlet will be Hamlet
An ineffable tragedy of the human spirit that still resonates, even today.
you know assuming the impact didn't incinerate me
If I recall correctly it also regulates our (somewhat) stable rotation.
pus everywhere
Butt blood.
There is nothing really grosser on earth than butt blood.
Well, maybe there is, but I'm the squeamish type.
Everyone in the inner two circles dies immediately. Furthermore, the ground in these circles is flattened, even with an airburst (similar to Tunguska, which did not hit the ground) to rock. Everything else in the outer circles probably dies afterwards. I dunno, 5 million people. If the thing did London I could give you better population estimates.
But the bottom line is something like this could hit the ocean and noone would die whatsoever. And the chances of that are extremely likely compared to it hitting NYC.
Getting killed by asteroid is incredibly unlikely, even if it hits the Earth. There are impacts every year, all over the place. Even more hit the atmosphere.
As someone said, the Moon gets hit all the fucking time. So do we. But the weather systems, erosion and atmosphere hide the craters extremely well.
Anything over, I dunno, a mile wide kills us all mind you. No matter where it hits.
i figure that would be 4 mil dying immediately, another 3 mil in the outer circles, the rest probably fucked too
NO IT DOESN'T NO NO NO NO NO
Butt blood is its own species
I am not listening to you lalalalalalalalalaa
oh fuck you
I DON'T WANNA FAAAAAAAAALLL ASLEEEEEEEEEEEP
GODDAMMIT
'CAUSE I MISS YOU, BABY
AND I DON'T WANNA MISS A THAAAAAANG
I address you tonight not as the President of the United States, not as a leader of a country, but as a citizen of humanity. We are faced with the very gravest of challenges. The Bible calls this day "Armageddon"-the end of all things. And yet, for the first time in the history of the planet, a species has the technology to prevent its own extinction. All of you praying with us need to know that everything that can be done to prevent this disaster is being called into service.
The human thirst for excellence, knowledge, every step up the ladder of science, every adventurous reach into space, all of our combined technologies and imaginations, even the wars that we've fought have provided us the tools to wage this terrible battle. Through all of the chaos that is our history, through all of the wrong and the discord, through all of the pain and the suffering, through all of our times, there is one thing that has nourished our souls, and elevated our species above its origins, and that is our courage.
The dreams of an entire planet are focused tonight on those fourteen brave souls traveling into the heavens. And may we, citizens the world over, see these events through. God speed, and good luck to you.