Asteroid on collision course with Mars

[bananas]

Source: London Times

Mars is in danger of being struck by an asteroid at the end of next month, astronomers have calculated.

The newly discovered space rock known as 2007 WD5 has a one in 75 chance of colliding with the planet on January 30. While the probability of an impact is only slim, the odds have been cut from one in 350 when the object was first identified, and they are much shorter than is usual for new asteroids.

If 2007 WD5, which is about 100 metres in diameter, does strike Mars on January 30, it would cause an explosion equivalent to several megatonnes of TNT.

“These odds are extremely unusual,” said Steve Chesley, an astronomer with the Near Earth Object Program at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, California.

Read more: http://www.timesonline.co.uk/tol/news/uk/science/article3082960.ece

[Ian David]

1. See also:

"No one could have anticipated that an asteroid could have gotten so close to Earth undetected..."
Topic started by IanDB1 on Nov-12-07 08:36 PM (4 replies)
Last modified by awoke_in_2003 on Nov-12-07 08:53 PM
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=389&topic_id=2268211



'Planet Killer' Not in the Stars, Asteroid Research Indicates
Topic started by IanDB1 on Mar-09-07 12:06 PM (20 replies)
Last modified by opihimoimoi on Mar-12-07 06:19 AM
http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=show_topic&forum=102&topic_id=2761006

[SpiralHawk]

2. "Don't worry. Nothing to fear. I'm in charge." - Commander AWOL

"You Proles can have full confidence, smirk, that we republicon homelanders will do a Heckuva Job on this Mars thingy.

"You can depend that we republicon homelanders will always - smirk - find a way to make a profit for our cronies. Disaster is our spec-ial-ity. Smirk, smirk, smirk."

- Commander AWOL

[jakem]

3. so long as it doesn't blow up uranus...

yes, i have the sense of humor of a 6 year old.

i keep it in a jar on my desk...

[formercia]

10. The boys have been blowing smoke up uranus for decades

:rofl:

[Wise Doubter]

38. We MUST pray for the destruction of Uranus...

So we can wipe out the klingons that are circling it !

[SpiralHawk]

4. "What's the difference between an asteroid and and a hemaroid?" - Sen. Larry Craig (R)

"As soon as you find out let me know and I will tell Rush Limbaugh. That way he can cover his draft-dodging butt."

- Sen. Larry Wide Stance Craig (R)

[paparush]

5. When you're talking asteroids and planets, 1 in 75 are not exactlly slim odds...

[colorado_ufo]

35. If it were the Lottery

I would buy a ticket.

[Socal31]

37. That's odd.....

because trying to guess correct numbers in roulette almost made be broke in college....and I had a 1 in 37 chance there.

[Buzz Clik]

6. Time to send the Martians some duct tape and plastic sheeting.

Tell them FEMA is on alert.

[shadowknows69]

7. And if it doesn't hit Mars?

Are we sure it won't hit us? Not that we could do much about it but it would be nice to know an approximate date so I can go on that credit card spending spree I've been planning.

[formercia]

11. The EOT crowd beat you to it.

And when the World didn't end, the economy collapsed.

[Thor_MN]

25. If it doesn't, then its orbit will likely be altered.

Since they can only say the odds are that it hits are 1 in 75, they don't know how the asteroid's orbit will be changed if it doesn't impact Mars. It could bullseye Earth, but much greater chances that it goes further out away from the sun.

[Teaser]

8. Could be cool

maybe release some liquid water from below the surface.

[comtec]

9. Maybe we'll see th Martian ray gun! :)

That'll shoot it out of the sky?> :)
LOL sorry I had to be silly. 1:75 are insanely good chances that Mars will be hit!
Or one of it's moons at the very least.
To be honest I find this REALLY interesting!
I have always had a interest in astronomy, and remember when people thought Shoemaker/levey 9 was going to jump start Saturn into a second sun.

It would be interesting to see what happens.
Thankfully there is no known life on Mars to be wiped out... that we honestly know of.

[nebenaube]

13. you mean Jupiter... n/t

[lovuian]

12. Martians better duck and cover

a big bang is coming

[smb]

14. Marvin Sez...

"There was supposed to be an earth-shattering kaboom!"

[stubtoe]

15. It was cool when the comet collided with Jupiter, but this is getting too close for comfort!

Maybe an asteroid collision with Mars will kick up some big chunks of Mars rocks that will find their way HERE in a spectacular way. :scared:

[MilesColtrane]

16. That sucker's about the size of the Tunguska meteor.

That impact was about 1,000 times the energy of the Hiroshima bomb.

If it were headed towards Earth, 1 in 75 wouldn't be long enough odds for me.

[byronius]

17. Kickin' for Mars,

[TrogL]

18. EVERYBODY PANIC

WE'RE ALL GONNA DIE

.

.

errr...wait. Mars?

[shadowknows69]

19. Mars is pretty close

astronomically speaking

[Algorem]

20. Oy.I hope it doesn't mar Mars.

[Lochloosa]

22. Boooooooooooo

[AngryAmish]

21. Way to go, Bush!

[tabasco]

40. Poor Booshie gets blamed for everything!

AngryAmish says boohoohoo!!

[truthisfreedom]

23. Hmm. That's going to kick up more genetic material that will fly through space and end up here.

We're like the petri dish for our solar system.

[MilesColtrane]

24. Considering the way things have been going the past seven years,...

...it feels more like we're the grease trap.

[JBoy]

26. Rev Phelps is saying it's punishment for all that Martian debauchery

[Tejas]

27. he's on top of that as we speak

[Myrina]

28. So, umm ... could this cause Mars' orbit to wobble?

And if so, might that have a ripple effect throughout the Universe somehow/someway?

:shrug:

[MilesColtrane]

29. It's too small to affect it's orbit in a noticeable way. n/t

[GoddessOfGuinness]

30. If an asteroid collision can cause mass-extinction on an inhabited planet...

could it create life on a planet seemingly devoid of inhabitants?

[Sam Ervin jret]

31. some theories have put forth that as the cause for our own existence, although more likely a comet

[Selatius]

45. With Mars? No. Planet's atmosphere is too thin, environment too cold.

In the past, the atmosphere may have been thick enough to act as a blanket. Indications are that there was once flowing water on Mars in the distant past. All the water has frozen now. Scientists say the atmosphere thinned out when the planet's magnetosphere likely weakened over billions of years. The magnetosphere prevents the atmosphere from being stripped away by the solar winds generated by the sun. To this day, the planet is still losing its atmosphere to the solar winds. Earth has a strong magnetosphere because there is still a lot of heat and activity inside the earth, evidenced by volcanoes and tectonic activity, and gases spewed from volcanoes help keep the atmosphere replenished if any is being lost.

[LongTomH]

32. Not to worry! Marvin the Martian will take care of it!

His Plutonium PU-239 Space Modulator will blow it to smithereens!

[Thor_MN]

33. We'll be likely saying "Where was the ka-boom? There was supposed to be an eath shattering ka-boom"

[Gman]

34. I hope it does and we get to observe it happen and the effects

[IDemo]

36. "Bush Announces Brownie to Head First Mars Mission" n/t

[humbled_opinion]

39. Most likely it will send Mars...

on a collision course with earth.. just beautiful... hope Bush got the answers for that scenario...:smoke:

[TrogL]

41. Of course he does

Pray to Jebus with your head up your ass.

[DuaneBidoux]

42. On a serious note: a strike would be extraordinary in view of recent Jupiter strike.

To have two planets hit in the solar system within a relatively short time for cosmic time span could imply that when it comes to foreign bodies striking planets we are at a significantly higher risk than we had believed.

[bemildred]

43. Yep, and if Mars can be hit, so can we.

But we knew that already.

[musicblind]

44. poop

Yeah my astronomy professor, who graduated from Yale, told our class that the most likely warning we will have of a devestating astroid hitting the earth will be about 5 to 10 seconds. We'll see the sky pill back and then feel the impact, and that will be it. The reason for this is because there are just too many out there for us to ever ever track and see, without funding for this we are lost.

I really really hope that Bush, and the government let this be a wake up call and start working and funding this stuff like mad. That professor scared the POOP out of me and the rest of the class!

[DuaneBidoux]

47. Obviously--but I think my point is missed.

Two planets in one solar system within the span of 30 or 40 years is a lot more frequent than we have estimated. There may be a lot less chance that it is "somewhere out there in a million years" and instead inevitably much sooner. The fact that we haven't been seriously hit for 65 million years may be the exception rather than the rule and there me be a lot more flying bodies out there in our immediate neighborhood than we had estimated.

[bemildred]

48. An excellent point.

We don't really know what to expect, or what the probabilities really are. In any case "past experience is no guarantee of future results."

[IDemo]

46. I witnessed an extrordinary fireball ~35 years ago

I was lining up a shot on the golf course when everybody started yelling about an object in the sky. I looked up to see what looked like a small sun with a blue halo and a tail moving smoothly across the sky northwards. Small chunks could be seen coming off the object (one local woman later swore to the media that "the UFO's occupants could be seen parachuting out :P "). It disappeared behind Deer Point, one of the two mountains defining the local ski area (Bogus Basin), reappeared, then disappeared behind Shafer Butte and over the horizon.

Reading Carl Sagan had already got me convinced I was going to become an astronomer, and my Astronomy Magazine published an article a couple of months later headlined: "Cosmic Boulder Skims Rockies". They had apparently calculated the path of the bolide (fireball, or large meteor) and determined that it had escaped an impact with Earth. It was believed that it would have created a large explosion, "possibly as large as a small nuke" if it had struck. We had witnessed what was surely an astronomically rare astronomic event.

[Didereaux]

49. Oh the HORROR! Oh the HUMANITY! gadzooks they'll need to double ...

the number of psycho-babblists in San Frrancisco and Marin County!

heh