Earth Under Attack From Space
For quite a while now we’ve carried the torch against the coming robot uprising, but maybe we should have been a little more concerned about dangers from above. It seems marauding objects from space are going on the offensive against the planets.
Last night an asteroid about 800 feet long passed within 334,000 miles of the Earth, about 1.4 times the distance to the Moon. In cosmic terms, that’s shaving it a little close for comfort. Scientists estimate if 2007 TU24 had hit the Earth, it would have released 1,500 megatons of energy. And that would not have been awesome.
Tonight another astroid will make a close encounter with Mars, passing as close as 16,000 miles from the surface of that planet. Some scientists were happy as little school girls earlier when they thought there was a good chance 2007 WD5 might actually make an impact on the Red Planet, but now they’ll have to settle for a fly-by.
Meanwhile, one of our own creations is trying to get back home. A US spy satellite launched in 2006 that has lost power is slowly falling from orbit and is expected to enter the atmosphere late next month or in March. No one seems to know — or they’re not saying — where it might hit if it survives re-entry, but I certainly don’t want to be in the way.
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