A photo from open sources
Specialists in the field of celestial mechanics from St. Petersburg State University made a disappointing forecast. By experts estimate that in 2029 an asteroid will approach the Earth Apophis, and in 2068 it may well fall to the surface of our the planet. The mass of this celestial body is about 60 million tons, so the consequences of a hypothetical collision will be catastrophic for our planet.
Apophis was discovered by American scientists in 2004. The Kitt Peak Observatory who made this discovery immediately then declared the possibility of collision of the object with the Earth. First it was believed that the fall could take place in 2029, but then he was “moved” to 2036. Now about the likelihood of a disaster spoke Russian researchers. In their opinion, an asteroid can crash into our planet only in 2068, and even such the probability is far from absolute.
A photo from open sources
For their calculations, domestic scientists used data obtained by the Herschel European Space Telescope. According to new satellite information, the diameter of an asteroid approaching the Earth equal to about 330 meters. If the object actually collapses on our “blue ball”, the collision power will be about 1720 megatons in TNT equivalent. For comparison, the power of the explosion The Tsar Bombs was “only” 58.6 megatons.
Apophis is expected to fly to our planet in 2068. the distance is only a few thousand kilometers. If the trajectory the asteroid’s motion intersects the Earth’s orbit, then the troubles pass by. Possible places to fall the block will be Kazakhstan, Siberia, Pacific and Atlantic oceans, Central America. However, these are just predictions that may not come true. At least least NASA looks at the situation much more optimistic, convincing earthlings that they should be afraid, at least, not an asteroid Apophis, and much more mundane dangers, for example, changes climate on our planet, to which man himself is to blame, not some space “guests” …
Kazakhstan
