Far out cosmology: close encounter of an asteroid (Introduction)

by David Turell , Saturday, June 22, 2024, 16:18 (152 days ago) @ David Turell

Visible to the eye:

https://www.forbes.com/sites/jamiecartereurope/2024/06/20/the-asteroid-that-will-get-cl...

"Friday the 13th may be considered an unlucky day, but at 5:45 EDT (11:45 CEST) on Friday, April 13, 2029, it will prove the exact opposite when a massive asteroid passes safely past Earth.

"Everyone will be watching. Asteroid Apophis is, at about 1,230 feet (375 meters) across, larger than 90% of space rocks.

"It will pass just 19,635 miles (31,600 kilometers) from Earth’s surface, the closest approach of an asteroid of this size that humankind has ever experienced. It will pass between Earth’s geostationary satellites and the Atlantic Ocean, just a tenth of the distance between Earth and the moon.

"Apophis will be visible to the naked eye. As it crosses the Atlantic, a few billion people in Europe, Africa and Asia can see it for a few hours in the night sky if skies are clear.

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"It hit the headlines after a paper was published that calculated that it could strike Earth in 2029, 2036 or 2068. It was, therefore, named after Apophis, the Egyptian demon of chaos and destruction.

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"In 2021, radar observations by NASA’s Goldstone Deep Space Communications Complex, California and the Green Bank Observatory, West Virginia, in March 2021 refined its orbit. It was announced that Apophis would not strike Earth in 2029, 2036, or 2068.

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"...astronomers can only rule out an impact for the next 100 years.

"The calculations are difficult because a close flyby—such as the one in 2029—will alter Apophis’ orbit so that it could strike Earth in a future orbit. However, astronomers have reduced the uncertainty in Apophis’ orbit from hundreds to just a few miles.

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"For now, what scientists learn from sending spacecraft to study Apophis in 2029 will be about how a relic of the early solar system reacts to gravity. The findings could be crucial for future Earthlings in hundreds of years when the massive asteroid poses a bigger threat."

Comment: asteroids are part of the sun's planetary disc, little rocks that didn't become planets. dhw will ask why God allowed this circumstance endangering His favorite humans. The article shows how our God-given brains are solving the problem. Another possible view is God's may have made the decision that life should be challenging, not a Garden of Eden.