The Earth is going to get hit? Alerts we have seen and survived over the years

Source: pixabay- “Asteroids, comets, and cosmic close calls—what’s really at stake?”

How many times have we lived in fear of existence caused by an interstellar object? Read along to see how we have survived and escaped from a fate like that of the dinosaurs.

Sometimes I wonder what would have happened if the dinosaurs were still on earth. The humongous creatures roamed on the earth millions of years ago. And it’s a known fact that they were her for longer than us. Everything was going right for them; no human beings to pollute their environment, no useless wars. What went wrong then?

I remember my teacher in school telling me it had happened because some big space rock collided with the earth. This collision ruined the atmosphere by throwing up large amounts of dust all around. Such big creatures. And all it took was a space rock which decided it also wanted to visit the earth.

Just thinking about something like that happening again gives me the shivers. Could we survive if something like this happened now? We have the right technology at our hands. Surely, we can manage? We never know. But thankfully we haven’t stumbled upon such a situation yet. Although, there have been some serious space alerts we should take notice of.

Apophis

Such a regal name. Apophis. It was named after the Egyptian god of destruction and chaos, and as awesome as it sounds, asteroid Apophis is a lurking threat for our civilization. Detected way back in 2004, asteroid 99942 Apophis is one of the most dangerous space threats we need to look out for. When it was identified, astronomers concluded that it would hit the earth in 2068. But its trajectory wasn’t estimated that properly and there were differing impact dates. First it was thought that it would come extremely close in 2029, then they thought it would be in 2036.

In 2021, NASA reported that some impact assessment had ruled out the possibility of it hitting the earth in 2068 or 2029 or 2036. Some new radar observations had been done and now astronomers conclude that it would not collide with our planet for at least a century. The impact date has been pushed back.

But as luck would have it, we are not entirely estranged from the asteroid. It has been reported that this asteroid will come extremely close to the earth on April 13, 2029. So close that we will be able to see it with our naked eyes!

Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9

Source: Stock Illustration ID_2487088801- 3D Illustration of Impact Comet Shoemaker–Levy 9 o

Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 was a menace. But a very helpful one. Its collision with Jupiter was an extremely significant astronomical event. Why, you ask? Well, this was the first time we had directly observed any collision in space!

Wait, rewind! What’s the difference between a comet and a meteor? Its simple. An asteroid is a rocky object floating around in the region between Mars and Jupiter known as the Asteroid Belt. A comet, on the other hand, are also small bodies which orbit the sun. When they get considerably close, their ice melts and vaporizes. This gives them a pretty halo.

The comet had been spotted by skywatching couple, Eugene and Carolyn Shoemaker and astronomer David Levy (that’s where it gets its name from). This was in March 1993. And this was a big BIG comet. It was concluded by the space community that giant Jupiter was surely in for a beating this one time. Even more so because the comet had fragmented into smaller portions and all were speeding towards Jupiter.

On July 16, 1994, all the fragments crashed into the Gas Giant. The biggest impact recorded was that of Fragment G and it has been estimated that this was on par with the collision that had destroyed the dinosaurs.

So, imagine what would have happened if this comet had been speeding towards the Earth. Yikes!

Asteroid 2024 BX1

We have such good tech that enables us to detect extraterrestrial objects and predict their trajectories easily with the help of our scientific developments. One such prediction was the asteroid 2024 BX1 which hit the earth’s atmosphere some kilometers west of Berlin, Germany.

The asteroid was detected by Krisztian Sarneczky just a few days before all of this unfolded. On January 20, Sarneczky found that a new asteroid was hurling towards our planet. On more calculation and observation, he confirmed its trajectory and that it was going to collide with the earth.

Fortunately, this was one of the many asteroids which pose no danger to us. It fell apart in our atmosphere and now, meteorite hunters have successfully tracked down its fragments. This is great news for the astronomy community because now they will be able to study more about such space rocks.

Asteroid 2024 ME1

We have more bogeys in our radar. All of these are called Potentially Hazardous Objects (PHO) and the eligibility criteria to be a part of this category is to have a trajectory heading towards earth and to be big enough to cause destruction.

Asteroid 2024 ME1 is a recent discovery and has been flagged as a PHO. Fortunately, for us, this 130-foot big asteroid didn’t collide with us and just came uncomfortably close. Phew!

Asteroid 2024 NF

We are lucky that our position and motion in space spares us from becoming the target of asteroids and comets. Just like the one mentioned before, there is another asteroid which came very close to our planet but thankfully, didn’t collide with us.

Asteroid 2024 NF is as big as a plane. And NASA reported an asteroid alert because of its size and trajectory. Its going to come very close to our planet on July 17, 2024. Along with it are many other similar asteroids with the same route. But they are not as big as our 220-ft long guest.

We are safe then? Well. For now. But space is a mystery to us mere mortals as of now. We know next to nothing about the phenomena in outer space and beyond. So, while we haven’t detected anything dangerous yet, we have to prepare ourself for the most unexpected at all times.

Resources

Apophis

NASA Analysis: Earth Is Safe From Asteroid Apophis for 100-Plus Years – NASA. (2021, March 26). NASA; NASA. https://www.nasa.gov/solar-system/nasa-analysis-earth-is-safe-from-asteroid-apophis-for-100-plus-years/
Lea, R. (2024, May 10). “God of Destruction” asteroid Apophis will come to Earth in 2029 — and it could meet some tiny spacecraft. Space.com; Space. https://www.space.com/asteroid-apophis-satellite-spacecraft-mission-2029

Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9

Evans, B. (2024, July 15). Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9: The backstory and its impact. Astronomy Magazine. https://www.astronomy.com/science/comet-shoemaker-levy-9-the-backstory-and-its-impact/
Admin. (2018, August 25). Difference Between Asteroid And Comet – Difference and Comparison | BYJU’S. BYJUS; BYJU’S. https://byjus.com/physics/asteroid-and-comet-difference/

Asteroid 2024 BX1