10 space objects that threaten the Earth

Humanity lies in wait for many dangers against which even our most important weapon - scientific and technological progress - is powerless. One of them is a collision with space rocks (asteroids).

Is humanity in store for the fate that may befall the dinosaurs? The answer to this question is known by Sentry, an intelligent system for assessing the risks of falling space objects. She tracks asteroids that have a chance to collide with Earth. We will tell you more about the ten most dangerous of them.

10.2012QD8

The maximum chance of collision is 1 in 188,679.
Estimated date - 8 March 2047 11:18 PM

A celestial body with a diameter of 90 meters opens a list of potential deaths from space. In August 2012, it flew past the Earth at a distance of 5.9 million km. Although the asteroid flew away, it promised to return in 2047.

True, the likelihood that he will decide to make a closer acquaintance with us is very small.

9.2008JL3

The probability of collision is 1 chance in 13,280.
Estimated date - May 1, 2027 9:07 am

May 2008 turned out to be fruitful for astronomers - they discovered as many as five asteroids. But only one of them was honored to get into the top 10 space objects that threaten the Earth. It was named 2008JL3.

However, like the tenth place in the ranking, this celestial visitor was not as deadly as it seemed. It is small, only 30 meters in diameter, and the probability of collision with the Earth is extremely low. The next time he will pass the Earth very close, in 2027.

8.2006JY26

The probability of a collision is 1 in 86.
Estimated date - May 3, 2074 1:00

A tiny asteroid only 8 meters in diameter was recorded on telescope screens in May 2006. And although in comparison with the rest of the rating participants, the probability of its collision with the Earth is quite high, because of its size, the "space threat" only causes cheerful laughter.

Most likely, a fiery end awaits the baby in the upper atmosphere. The inhabitants of the Earth will be able to observe this in 2074.

7.2008UB7

The probability of collision is 1 in 36,101.
Estimated date - October 31, 2060 18:26

The sixty-meter asteroid 2008UB7 was discovered, as you might guess from the name, in 2008, in October, seven days before it approached the Earth at a distance of 6.3 million km.

Although, judging by the range of the flight, it is hardly worth fearing its fall in the near foreseeable future, scientists have already calculated the expected power of the explosion. It turned out to be equal to 16 megatons of TNT. Whether it is true or not, humanity will find out in October 2060, when 2008UB7 again approaches our planet.

6.2009JF1

The chance of collision is 1 in 4464.
Estimated date - May 6, 2022 8:12

Well, in fact, who gave these scientists the hands of telescopes! So just a year after the discovery of danger number 6, they discovered another threat to Earth in the dark depths of space.

Fortunately, the diameter of the hazard is not the most outstanding - only 13 meters. But we will meet him before everyone else - in June 2022. Judging by the diameter of the threat, most likely, humanity will survive this meeting.Unless he will get the opportunity to admire a small, albeit bright, fiery cloud suddenly blossoming high in the sky.

5.99942 Apophis

The probability of collision is 1 chance in 531,914.
Estimated date - 12 April 2068 15:13

A rather dramatic story is connected with this asteroid, the only one on the list to receive its own name. It was opened in 2004 in Australia. A cosmic body far (so far) from us has a diameter of 375 meters, and judging by the calculations of scientists, it belongs to the so-called. Atonic asteroids.

This means that part of the orbit of such asteroids intersects with the orbit of our planet. Of course, this observation did not promise anything good for the Earth. Excited scientists made calculations, and it turned out that in 2029 a blind cosmic force will strike our world. The probability of this event was also calculated - it turned out to be 3%. Therefore, the asteroid was awarded its own name, in honor of a particularly cruel god from the Egyptian pantheon, who had in his life one, but an important goal: to destroy the Sun.

Fortunately, everything turned out to be far from so terrible, and you can not stock up on cans of stew in anticipation of the coming apocalypse. In the next year, 2005, new studies of the asteroid showed that in 2029 it will pass tangentially. And the inhabitants of the Northern Hemisphere can even see it with their own eyes in the sky in the form of a luminous point. And on this all his "adventures" will end.

4.2000SG344

The probability of collision is 1 in 2096.
Estimated date - September 16, 2071 00:26

Until December 2004, it was believed that this small celestial body with a diameter of only 30 meters has the highest chances of meeting us directly. True, according to the risk scale, its impact was assessed as small. Still, this asteroid is very small and, most likely, would have burned beautifully in the upper atmosphere.

Later, he had a competitor (the fifth place in the rating of space threats - Apophis), and everyone forgot about the baby. Still, 700 meters is not 30 for you. And even later it turned out that the likelihood of a collision is small - 1 chance in 417.

By the way, there are very interesting rumors about this small celestial body. The 2000SG344's orbit is very similar to Earth's. According to scientists' calculations, in 1971, this star wanderer once again visited the vicinity of our planet. What else happened in 1971 so cosmic? That's right, that's when the next Apollo-class rocket, version 14, was launched.

The astronauts flew to the moon and returned, bringing with them about 50 kg of lunar soil as a souvenir. And these two circumstances suggest that the cosmic body is not so cosmic, and maybe even quite man-made. For example, it could be the remains of a Saturn-class launch vehicle. In the end, there was already a precedent when some scientists considered the SIVB launch vehicle to be a natural asteroid, floating in space many years after the Apollo 12 flight.

3.2019DS1

The probability of collision is 1 chance in 787.
Estimated date - February 26, 2082 19:15

This is a newcomer in the ranks of the most dangerous space objects for the Earth. 2019DS1 was opened quite recently, at the end of February 2019, when it once again flew past the Earth.

This year the distance from the asteroid to our planet was quite large - 726 thousand km. And, we add, safe enough.

The next time a heavenly guest will pass through the Earth's orbit in 2082. At this time, 2019DS1 will try to establish closer contact with the Earth, flying up to a distance of only 165 thousand km. And there is a small, but chance that it will suddenly change its trajectory and fall on our heads.

2.1979XB

Collision probability - 1 / 1.84E6.
Estimated date - December 14, 2113 18:07

In second place, according to Sentry, is an asteroid discovered 40 years ago by Australian astronomers with a diameter of as much as 700 meters.

It will take a long time to wait for a potential collision, because even in the case of the most unfavorable scenario, the asteroid will reach us only in 2113. However, its diameter forces one to be wary of even an insignificant chance of 1 / 1.84E6. But what if?

If so, the consequences for the Earth could be catastrophic. The earth's surface bears many traces of a collision with intruders - like a giant Canadian crater 200 km in diameter, formed from the impact of an asteroid 5-10 km in diameter.

The second place in the rating, of course, is smaller, but it is capable of digging a hole a couple of kilometers wide, as its colleague, which formed the Berringer crater in the United States, has already done 50 thousand years. But what if the place of impact of the meteorite falls on a densely populated city? If the worst scenario is realized, there is only one consolation - that we, dear readers, will not live to see this gloomy date.

1.2010RF12

The probability of a collision is 1 in 16.
Estimated date - September 5, 2095 11:50 PM

The greatest danger to Earth from space is the asteroid 2010RF12. Its diameter is modest - only 9 meters, but it will crash into the Earth with the highest probability of all of the above. According to scientists, it is 5%.

2010RF12 has already passed dangerously close to the Earth, at a distance of only 79 thousand km. True, only penguins could admire it, since it was visible only from the South Pole. Fortunately, due to its small diameter, 2010RF12 is unlikely to cause significant damage and is likely to collapse in the atmosphere.

The maximum that the asteroid will be capable of is an impressive ball of fire, like at a rock concert. The power of the explosion will be inferior to the Chelyabinsk one, which, as we remember, was 17 meters in diameter.

Does this mean that the danger from space for the Earth is greatly exaggerated? Scientists themselves say that visible asteroids are not so terrible as invisible. For example, the same Chelyabinsk meteorite was not recorded by any observatory until it knocked out the windows in the houses of city residents. Who knows what unknown danger creeps up to us from the endless darkness of space? Will the Earth be able to avoid death? Not us, so our descendants will definitely know about it.