Asteroid Apophis is among the biggest space threats that astronomers have been watching for several years. A space body with a diameter of 370 meters is rushing straight towards the Earth. According to estimates, Apophis should come dangerously close in 2029. If it collides with another asteroid along the way, it is possible that it will hit the Earth.
Apophis is also among the cosmic bodies that astronomers have been working hard on in recent years. The asteroid, which scientists first noticed in 2004, is approaching the Earth. If the Earth were to hit, the asteroid, which is 370 meters in diameter, would cause a catastrophe.
Apophis was monitored by a team of Canadian astrophysicists, who published their findings on the portal Arxiv. In their work, they focused on the path that the asteroid is supposed to follow in the coming years. And the results are disturbing.
According to calculations, Apophis will fly closest to Earth on April 13, 2029, when it will come within less than 40 thousand kilometers. By comparison, Earth’s only natural satellite, the Moon, orbits the planet at a distance of 384,403 kilometers.
Even so, according to astrophysicists, there is only a small chance that Apophis will hit Earth in five years. “The probability that any body in the Solar System will collide with Apophis is extremely small. The highest probability is that the object will pass close to the planet without any collision,” the paper states.
However, there is still one possibility that Apophis could hit Earth. If the asteroid changes its trajectory by even a fraction of an angle. In such a case, the probability of an asteroid hitting the Earth increases.
And just such an opportunity should occur three years before Apophis approaches the Earth. In 2026, according to calculations, it should fly close to another asteroid, about 1,300 meters large Xantho. Both asteroids will pass at a distance of about 10 thousand kilometers. The tail that Xanthus leaves behind could thus collide with Apophis and affect its trajectory.
Astrophysicists therefore recommend monitoring the asteroid in the following years, so that it is possible to find out in time whether Apophis poses a threat, and in the event of a growing danger, to plan a way to defend against the impact of the asteroid.
Several asteroids are headed for Earth. One of them is 900 meters ago (8/2023):
TN.cz
2024-03-09 04:40:00
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