The dinosaurs met their doom thanks to a visitor from space. Around 66 million years ago, an asteroid measuring at least 10 kilometers across wreaked havoc on the dinosaurs' world, killing 75% of them.
Earth remained despite all this.
Does this mean our planet isn't at risk of being hit by asteroids? What would it take to end the world? Is it possible that a space rock could destroy the entire Earth?
There are many ways to stop an asteroid.
It would take a large rock to destroy our planet. It would take a long time to destroy life on Earth.
Brian Toon, a professor of atmospheric and oceanic sciences at the University of Colorado Boulder, said in an email that an object bigger than Mars hit Earth early in its history and made the moon.
Toon is referring to the giant impact hypothesis, a scientific theory that suggests a Mars-size planet named Theia collided with Earth 4.5 billion years ago, unleashing a volley of rocky debris into space that eventually coalesced into our moon. Mars is 6,700 km wide and measures about 4,200 miles.
Scientists theorize that part of Theia's core and mantle fused with ours when the first life emerged. There is no doubt that Theia would have wiped it out if it had been alive at the time. The Theia impact is thought to have caused life to appear as early as 4.5 billion years ago.
It takes less than a rogue planet to ruin life on Earth, even if the planet is still there. If a space rock measures at least 140 meters in diameter and is within 4.5 million miles of Earth, it is considered a potential hazard. According to NASA, an impact from such a rock could wipe out a whole city.
A collision with a larger rock, measuring at least 0.6 miles wide (1 km wide), would likely cause the end of civilization, according to an astronomer. If an impactor the size of the asteroid arrived today, it would most likely kill humans.
The fireball created by the initial impact kills anyone who can see it. Dust from the impact and smoke from the fires plunge our planet into a so- called impact winter.
Plants were unable to turn sunlight into energy due to the amount of dust and noxious gases in the sky. Animals and plant life would soon die off. Our early mammal ancestors only had a shot at survival if they were very small and ground dwelling.
NASA and other space agencies keep a close eye on thousands of potential impactors in our solar system. There is no risk of an asteroid hitting our planet in the next 100 years.
NASA is testing a plan to deal with a potentially hazardous space rock if it suddenly changes course and puts our planet in its sights. The space agency smashed an uncrewed rocket into an asteroid in order to change its trajectory.
Dimorphos isn't going towards Earth. NASA hopes to test the feasibility of crashing a spaceship into an asteroid as a means of planetary defense.
The dinosaurs wouldn't be happy.
It was originally published on Live Science
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