INCOMING!
Huge 1,200ft ‘God of Chaos’ asteroid is speeding up and could hit Earth in just 48 years
AN asteroid nicknamed the God of Chaos is gaining speed as it hurtles towards Earth, experts believe.
The peanut-shaped space rock Apophis is wobbling on to a potential collision course with our planet in 2068.
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If it strikes it could unleash an explosion the equivalent of 1,200million tons of TNT or about 80,000 Hiroshima nuclear bombs.
Astronomers had been confident Apophis, named after the Egyptian god of chaos, would miss Earth.
But now, they have discovered it is wavering off its path and picking up speed as it does so.
And the latest calculations put the chance of it smacking into us, causing global devastation, at just one in 150,000 — about a third the odds of being struck by lightning.
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Astronomer Dr Dave Tholen said: “The asteroid is drifting away from a purely gravitational orbit by about 170 metres per year, which is enough to keep the 2068 impact scenario in play.”
Apophis was discovered in 2004 and stands third on a Nasa list of collision threats to Earth.
It is about 1,200ft long, which makes it a few feet bigger than the Shard, Britain’s tallest building.
By contrast, the asteroid or comet which smacked into Earth 66million years ago, wiping out 75 per cent of species including the dinosaurs, was up to 50 miles wide.
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At first, astronomers said there was a 2.7 per cent risk that Apophis would strike Earth in 2029.
Further data then suggested it would pass within 19,794 miles at the end of this decade.
Now, University of Hawaii astronomers have April 12, 2068, in their diaries as collision day.
They have discovered its course is being affected by a phenomenon known as the Yarkovsky effect. This occurs as the asteroid absorbs and then radiates heat from the Sun.
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However, it does not happen evenly — and the side where more heat is radiated gets an additional thrust throwing the asteroid off the course set by gravitational force.
Dr Tholen, who discovered Apophis, said: “It’s such a tiny force that it’s not noticeable for larger objects but the smaller the object, the easier it is to detect the effect.”
As it brushes past Earth, it may be further thrown off course by the planet’s own gravitational pull.
What's the difference between an asteroid, meteor and comet?
Here's what you need to know, according to Nasa...
- Asteroid: An asteroid is a small rocky body that orbits the Sun. Most are found in the asteroid belt (between Mars and Jupiter) but they can be found anywhere (including in a path that can impact Earth)
- Meteoroid: When two asteroids hit each other, the small chunks that break off are called meteoroids
- Meteor: If a meteoroid enters the Earth's atmosphere, it begins to vapourise and then becomes a meteor. On Earth, it'll look like a streak of light in the sky, because the rock is burning up
- Meteorite: If a meteoroid doesn't vapourise completely and survives the trip through Earth's atmosphere, it can land on the Earth. At that point, it becomes a meteorite
- Comet: Like asteroids, a comet orbits the Sun. However rather than being made mostly of rock, a comet contains lots of ice and gas, which can result in amazing tails forming behind them (thanks to the ice and dust vapourising)
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Asteroids of Apophis’s size are reckoned to hit the Earth about once every 80,000 years.
Although, the odds of a strike are still about 25 times more likely than being eaten by a shark, there is no need to panic just yet.
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Dr Tholen reckons the real chances of an impact in 2068 are closer to one in 530,000 — a little better than of winning Olympic gold.
- What are your thoughts on the 'God of Chaos' asteroid? Let us know in the comments...
Nasa animation reveals Apophis Asteroid's closest approach to Earth
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