r/interestingasfuck • u/ExcellentArmy6659 • 9h ago
In April 2029 asteroid Apophis will pass within 20,000 miles of the Earth's surface. 12x closer than we are to the Moon.
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u/K_S_Nixon 8h ago
I just went to Friday 13 April 2029 in my calendar only to find my wife has already added 'Asteroid' as an item in our shared calendar that date. I knew I married her for a reason.
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u/reflect-the-sun 7h ago
Put a note in there for her to find when the date comes :)
"Nice moustache" or something sweet like that
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u/slicerprime 6h ago
Sneak a look at her calendar...
Thursday 12 April 2029 - Drain jackass's bank account and escape with alien lover
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u/djh_van 4h ago
Well, now you know she either works for NORAD, NASA, or is in a Doomsday Cult.
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u/TheDayWalkerCGI 9h ago
Omfg i need to buy toilet rolls quick
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u/ExcellentArmy6659 9h ago
It's Covid all over again.
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u/sweetdawg99 7h ago
I still don't know why we were eating all that toilet paper
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u/Fighting-Geese 9h ago
Phew, it just missed the Eiffel tower!
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u/wildcardbets 9h ago
Sacré bleu!
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u/InterestingDamage621 8h ago
FIRE ZE MISSILES!!
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u/Alas7ymedia 9h ago
How close is that? It doesn't say how many Eiffel towers would be the distance between Earth and the asteroid.
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u/Fighting-Geese 9h ago
It'll be about 97,536 Eiffel towers away
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u/Independent_Trade169 9h ago
How many bananas?
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u/patientpedestrian 7h ago
Only 7 but they're really big bananas. Come to think of it, the bananas might be a larger concern than the asteroid...
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u/Alas7ymedia 9h ago
And how many African elephants does it weigh? Because I suppose it will hit us eventually and I can't tell if it will make a crater of like 200 school buses in diameter and 5 swimming pools deep or much smaller.
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u/AgreeablyDisagree 9h ago
Where is SG-1 when we need them.
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u/ki5aca 9h ago
Scrolled way too far looking for a Stargate reference! Surely SG-1 are retired by now?! Fishing, probably.
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u/142riemann 6h ago
O’Neil is fishing in his lake with no fish.
Sam is on Atlantis.
Daniel has ascended.
And Teal'c is supreme leader of the Jaffa.
(I only track the original SG-1.)
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u/RadicalBatman 6h ago
There are fish in Jack's pond, at the end of an episode involving alternate realities or something, fish jump in his pond
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u/cardew-vascular 4h ago
There is no supreme leader of the Jaffa, there is no way a title like that would exist for an oppressed people. He is an Elder on a council of free and democratic Jaffa.
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u/arkangel1138 9h ago
Apophis is coming to wipe us out for Amazon cancelling the new series.
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u/Glad_Stranger 8h ago
I was trying to figure out the Stargate joke when I finally figured out it was about reality XD
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u/Fighter_Jet_enjoyer 8h ago
Naming an asteroid after the Egyptian big bad seems like tempting fate.
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u/ExcellentArmy6659 8h ago
The God of Chaos... that definitely feels like tempting fate. Maybe the science boffins know something we don't!
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u/OrangeRadiohead VIP Philanthropist 6h ago
The only god in the Egyptian pantheon that wasn't worshiped. There are no records of any temples or even offerings to him. The god of chaos and enemy of Ra.
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u/mrthomani 4h ago
IIRC, when it was named 20-some years ago, the boffins weren't yet sure if it'd hit Earth.
If it was to be the end of civilization as we know it, you want an appropriate name for it. It'd just seem silly for humanity to be wiped out by the asteroid "Derek".
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u/Soggy_District_6380 4h ago
If I remember correctly it never had the potential to hit earth in 2029. However if it passed through a fairly small keyhole it had the potential to adjust its orbit enough that it would return 13 years later and impact earth. Which would have ruined your weekend. I think they've since got more accurate readings and determined that it will not go through the keyhole and we're safe. Although as other comments have pointed out. It passes on Friday the 13th. 2+2+0+9=13 and it was returning 13 years later. Might start a cult.
I remember seeing Neil Degrasse Tyson do a video on it many many years ago. In fact I think he did many videos on it. It became a bit of a trope for him. Found the video.
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u/Randotron9000 9h ago
Please lord let it hit me while iam at work 🙏
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u/PostsNDPStuff 9h ago
Of course it's coming on a Friday
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u/Short-Recording587 8h ago
The Friday right before a long weekend where you’ve scheduled your first vacation in years.
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u/RocketTater 8h ago
And have to suffer through traffic first? Uh-uh, that shit better hit 30 minutes before my alarm goes off
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u/thesuperman182 9h ago edited 8h ago
Can you please compare it to the pool of the Lincoln Memorial?
Update: added Lincoln pool
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u/BalkeElvinstien 7h ago
Ah, so we simply have to aim the asteroid for the pool and it'll splash down safely
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u/Servo_comics 9h ago
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u/Beltain1 7h ago
"It is not our part to master all the tides of the world, but to do what is in us for the succour of those years wherein we are set, uprooting the evil in the fields that we know, so that those who live after may have clean earth to till. What weather they shall have is not ours to rule." - Gandalf (J.R.R Tolkien)
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u/Sudden_Wind_8636 2h ago edited 2h ago
Well don't worry, it isn't big enough for world ending, it's only big enough for country ending.
It will only destroy a couple hundred kilometers
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u/Dear_Mycologist_1696 8h ago
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u/Mr_Roll288 8h ago
Do I even wanna know wtf was the point he was trying to make with that graphic?
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u/a-dog-meme 7h ago
It’s bigger than a skyscraper! That’s literally what he was saying it’s not a spoof
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u/YrnFyre 5h ago
At this point I'm fairly sure this isn't even how he wants to make a point, more like the graphicals his cabinet uses to make a point to him, like explaining scale to a toddler.
And he went the usual "this is now mine, I made this" and made a big show about it to the press, oblivious of how ridiculous this all looks
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u/IHerebyDemandtoPost 6h ago
“Look how big the reflecting pond is. It has a length longer than the heights of these tall buldingsbare high.”
That was it.
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u/FloppydLover 9h ago
Check that gravity assist. So many orbit possibilities that I’d dread being the person/people tasked with keeping track of it all
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u/PigBocket 9h ago
Is there a chance for it to hit earth?
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u/ExcellentArmy6659 9h ago
Not from the statements NASA have made. They have confirmed it won't collide with the Earth for atleast a century or more.
However when it was first discovered in 2004 earlier estimates suggested the odds of it hitting the Earth were as low as 1/37.
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u/Machomandalf90 9h ago
When you think that ~3% is low odds, but then you realize its the odds the planet gets fucking owned.
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u/Express_Sprinkles500 6h ago
So this thing is around 4.5% the size of the asteroid that killed the dinosaurs. I remember cause the lower estimate for that one is 10 km. It would be bad, but it won’t be that bad.
For a relevant size comparison, this thing is around as big as the Empire State Building, to kill the majority of life on the planet it’d need to be the size of Manhattan.
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u/rjcarr 6h ago
Agreed, and if it hits the middle of the ocean, which is what like a 50% chance?, then it's not even tsunami level and nothing really comes of it. Or it could hit uninhabited land, which is probably another like 20-25%.
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u/yuval16432 3h ago
Probably a higher chance than 50%, most of the surface of earth is water
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u/_sansoHm 9h ago
Maybe if we all jump at the same time we can get in it's path.
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u/bottlecandoor 9h ago
I said jump on 3 not after 3.
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u/belamus 7h ago
Is it 1 2 3 and we jump
or
1 2 3 jump and then we jump•
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u/DaGucka 9h ago
If it will hit earth maybe in a century, would it be good to use this chance now and place a lot of explosives on it and when it leaves to blow it up?
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u/ProfessionalMockery 9h ago
It's not that it will in a century, that's just about as far as they can predict its location with enough accuracy.
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u/maracujas_amarelos 9h ago
What level of damage would an asteroid this size do if it hit the Earth? Would it be another mass extinction event or not a big deal?
I'm guessing its travel speed also matters, but IDK how much.
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u/kommon-non-sense 9h ago
Equal to about 1000MT
Regional, total destruction-but not a dinosaur event.
Terrible, and I'd rather not experience it - but not the end of humanity. Locally, yes - but not planetary.
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u/ghostofkozi 7h ago edited 3h ago
Oh so we have plenty of time to teach deep sea oil drillers to become astronauts then
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u/OriginalCrawnick 9h ago
Don't worry - based on that visual, it will collide with the moon instead.
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u/Senorbob451 9h ago
Are you telling me apophis is one of the craft from Arrival
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u/aurora_rosealis 8h ago
Oh please please please yes let it be true! I’m ready for the weapon/gift to arrive.
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u/IAmCaptainHammer 8h ago
I see someone asked about it hitting earth. Here I’m wondering what happens when an asteroid that big hits the moon?
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u/drillbit16 9h ago
what does 12x closer means? 1/12 of the distance?
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u/RealWord5734 8h ago
Grown adults don't know fractions. Remember when the 1/3 pounder failed because people thought it was smaller than a 1/4 pounder.
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u/trouserschnauzer 8h ago
Once we figure it out we will be able to save over 1000% on prescription drugs.
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u/ittybittycitykitty 8h ago
Compared to the sun the moon is really close.
So apophis will get, not just really close, not really really close, but
really really really really really really really really really really really really close.
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u/jwg020 8h ago
Can we like nudge the earth with rockets enough to get in the path?
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u/scottqwert 9h ago
Dont look up
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u/This_Loss_1922 9h ago
Plz hit florida
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u/Beneficial-Pitch-430 9h ago
Could you compare the size to something more relevant please? Maybe like a reflecting pool?
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u/SeaworthinessSalt524 9h ago
Neat. Would be nice if it was visible by naked eye during the fly-by
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u/ExcellentArmy6659 9h ago
In 2029 it should be visible to the naked eye in Africa, Europe and West Asia.
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u/hurricane_news 9h ago
How big would it be in the sky? Would it be a pin-point speck like a star or could we actually resolve the shape with our eyes? It's only 450m right?
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u/ExcellentArmy6659 9h ago
At 3.1 apparent magnitude it would apear like a bright star moving across the sky and be visible to the naked eye.
To put that into perspective, Venus appears at around 4.4 apparent magnitude and the full moon around 12.6 apparent magnitude.
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u/MrT735 7h ago
Venus is -4 and the moon -12.6, both significantly brighter. The ISS ranges between -4 and -6.
Magnitude 3 is in line with the "ordinary" stars that make up most of the constellations, notable but not bright enough to stand out on their own merits.
The apparent motion of asteroid Apophis is how you will find it most easily, along with a detailed star chart and timings of it passing near notable stars (this will be very region specific, due to parallax, look for guides published by media in your country as the day approaches).
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u/Double-decker_trams 9h ago
Hmm.. looking at that simulation of the trajectory - I instantly thought of Melancholia.
https://www.imdb.com/title/tt1527186/
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u/SiberianKitty99 6h ago
Lies, all lies. Depending on timeline, either SG-1 or Ba’al took out Apophis years ago. The last remaining Goa’uld is in RFK Jr’s head. Time to revisit the series.
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u/Alexandratta 5h ago
When NASA names a thing after an ancient Egyptian God of Chaos, Fire, and DEATH, we should probably be concerned.
That said.... not like I can do anything about it so... I guess just buy an unhealthy amount of booze, snacks, and drugs you may or may not have tried before, and see where the evening goes.
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u/Unusual_Statement_64 9h ago
It would nuke a city, but not a planet killer.
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u/ExcellentArmy6659 9h ago
If it collided with the Earth it could release up 2,750 megatons of TNT in kinetic enegry. The equivalent of about 183,000 Hiroshima-sized atom bombs
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u/Mysterious-Lab-5918 8h ago
Who knows what the state of humanity will be by that point.....
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u/KoalaTHerb 4h ago
"Earth: we already have a moon
Apophis: yes we have one, but what about second moon?"
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u/Civenge 9h ago
Sorry I can't get the sense of scale. Can you add the Lincoln memorial reflecting pool next to it?
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u/slaveshipoffailure 9h ago
I was gonna say that it'd be nice if it took us out but it's not big enough for that.
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u/Mon7eCristo 8h ago
"OMG what if it hits the Earth?"
-- Scientists - "Don't worry, it won't."
Asteroid destroys the Moon\
-- Scientists sending a message from a secret underground bunker - "See, we told you it won't hit the Earth."
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u/Doodkapje 8h ago
What would be the damage if the speeding rock would hit the earth? Total reset off earth? Total annihilation? Or is it more like 'sucks for where it strikes' but we will live?
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u/Made_Human_Music 8h ago
I know this was from a comet but anyone who has seen the movie will get it
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u/splinechaser 7h ago
I'm sorry without the reflecting pool to compare the scale... I just can't quite "get it."
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u/kabalongski 6h ago
Is this the reason why all these billionaires are buying up islands building bunkers on them?
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u/_PERFECT_NAME 9h ago
It will fly by Earth on Friday the 13th, for those who are a littlestitious.