Playing around the with this impact calculator yields some sobering estimates of what even a smallish asteroid or meteor strike could do. A 200 meter space rock hitting at 40 k/s would produce the explosive equivalent of 2400 megatons, about 160,000 times the "Little Boy" that was dropped on Hiroshima. If it hit land the final crater would be over 3 miles wide. From twenty miles away, the fireball would be close to 100 times brighter than the sun, many structures would be damaged or destroyed by the initial blast, 6.8 magnitude quake, and the three-foot flaming boulders that would rain down about a minute later. That's why a small group of dedicated astronomers spend their lives cataloging NEOs, so that they can warn people ahead of time, or maybe give us the option of nudging it safely away while it's still a long ways off. There's just one problem with that:
Congress ordered NASA in 2005 to find and track 90 percent of the large asteroids near Earth by 2020, but did not set aside the necessary funds required to do the job, according to a report released Wednesday by the National Academy of Sciences. Without that funding, NASA will not be able to build the new facilities and telescopes required to track potentially threatening asteroids down to the size of about 460 feet (140 meters) across, according to the interim report.
- Speaking of Space.com, they have a terrific illustrated survey of the ten most interesting exosolar planets. My favorite so far is The Old Geezer, which doesn't look a year over 10 billion.
- Whether it's science education, womens health, or civil rights, if you're interested in keeping abreast of one of the country's most active fronts in the culture wars, make Texas Freedom Network a daily stop.
- If you've ever thought that cheerful morning people and those who can function on less sleep than the rest of us are genetic mutants, you're right.
- Say hello to Ana, this season’s first named storm in the Atlantic. Right behind her is system 90L, which could be a tropical storm already, and long range models now indicate there is a chance it could reach hurricane strength in a few days.