The Apophis asteroid can cause the end of the world!
Asteroid 99942 Apophis was discovered in 2004 as part of a NASA-funded program. Its name is taken from Egyptian mythology and means a demon of destruction.
Pessimists admit the approaching catastrophe, because an asteroid, striking the earth, could sweep away humanity from its surface in a large area.
Will Asteroid 99942 Apophis hit the ground?
Scientists have been making calculations for 15 years to determine the probability that the Apophis asteroid will lead to the end of our civilization.
The first risky rapprochement will come in a decade.
However, the researchers estimate that the chance that the black scenario will come true is 1:37, or 2.7 percent.
When would the end of the world be caused by the apophis asteroid?
Researchers have calculated that the Apophis asteroid closest to the Earth will be on April 13, 2029.
Good information, however, is that a giant object should bypass the planet at a distance of about 38 thousand. kilometers.
It may seem that it is a great distance, but on a space scale it is a minimal distance and if the asteroid changes the course slightly, it may be destroyed.
All you have to say is that there has not been such a large object in history that would pass the Earth at such a short distance. Researchers argue that such an unusual phenomenon happens once every 1500 years!
What will the end of the world look like?
Originally, NASA estimated that the impact of Apophis would release energy equivalent to 1480 megatons of TNT. Last year, this forecast was adjusted to 1200 megatonnes.
How much force would we have to deal with?
The fact that the largest explosion caused so far by man, ie a thermonuclear bomb, has released energy equivalent to about 57 megatons of TNT (the Soviet Union dumped it in 1961 on the New Earth) may be the imagination.
The atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima, released energy at the "only" level of 0.013 megaton (it happened on August 6, 1945).
Will the entire world be destroyed?
Researchers say the effects of asteroid collision with the earth would depend on a number of factors. Among them, they mention:
construction of asteroids
disintegration of the planetoid by gravity of the Earth and passage through the atmosphere
a place where a collision with the surface of the Earth would occur
the angle of impact
How to save the world by colliding with Apophis?
The European Space Agency has recognized that Apophis - next to the asteroid 2003 SM84 - may be a threat to the earth, so it was to be the potential target of the Don Quijote space probe mission.
The probe was to check whether the asteroids and meteoroids could be deflected from their orbit, thus preventing a collision with the Earth.
Its start was planned for 2013 or 2015, but eventually the mission was abandoned.
Where will you be able to see the Apophis asteroid?
In 10 years, ie when the asteroid is closest to our planet, you can see it in Africa, Western Asia and Europe with the naked eye.