Dear MEL Topic Readers,
The asteroid that will spare Earth might hit the moon instead. What
happens if it does?
It was about 66 million years ago when an asteroid ten kilometers long
struck Earth, created a huge crater of 200 km in diameter, and caused the mass
extinction event that wiped out the non-avian dinosaurs. Last year,
astronomers discovered an asteroid that is around 60 meters in diameter and
named it YR4. It passed by Earth at a distance of only 828,000 km, or 2.16
lunar distances. Fortunately, astronomers predict a near-zero chance of this
asteroid striking our planet, but a 4.3% chance of hitting the Moon next time
it comes back in late 2032. If that happened, the impact would splash fine-grained
lunar sands and rocks that could reach our planet. Though most of them would be
burned in the atmosphere, they could hit satellites and space stations orbiting
our planet. Since space infrastructure is essential for our daily lives,
including the Internet, navigation, and weather monitoring, our lives would be
significantly affected. Also, by then, humans might have installed bases on the
Moon. Such projects may need to be revised if astronomers recalculate the asteroid’s
trajectory when the asteroid returns to view from Earth in 2028. What about the
next-to-next encounter in 2036?
Read the article and learn about this potentially life-threatening
asteroid.
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