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Strike by undetectable asteroid 'could kill a million'



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AN ASTEROID too small to be picked up by telescopes could wipe out a city, killing up to a million people, a leading scientist has warned.
Objects less than 460ft across are not currently detected, but research suggests they pack a far mightier punch than previously feared.

A computer simulation carried out in the United States shows asteroids as small as 100ft wide could cause "airbursts" similar to one that flattened 1,250 square miles of Siberian forest almost a century ago.

Dr Mark Boslough, in a report published in New Scientist, said: "It is becoming clear previous models are not right. If one of these events hit an area of high population density, it could kill a million people."



The full article contains 128 words and appears in The Scotsman newspaper.
Page 1 of 1

  • Last Updated: 18 December 2007 9:21 PM
  • Source: The Scotsman
  • Location: Edinburgh
 
1

Guga II,

Rockall 19/12/2007 02:39:00
The sky is falling, the sky is falling, we're all doomed.
2

St. Helena,

Peebles 19/12/2007 03:58:22
Nonsense. The sky is not falling and we are not all thus doomed. How could the sky be falling, anyway? In space - which way is 'up'? Our doom is nothing more than our destiny, pre-ordained, or purely random - it is coming to get YOU.
3

Mercutio,

FALKIRK 19/12/2007 05:27:50
Has anybody told Chicken Licken?
4

Dave from Barra ©,

Western Isles 19/12/2007 07:51:21
If it's undetected or undetectable we shall never know and those that are killed will never know what happened to them.

So in that case, who gives a flying fek?
5

airmick,

Delaware USA 19/12/2007 07:57:37
If the big one hits,I'd be willing to bet that only a few politicians and some of those 5 x average size rats will be the only thing that could possibly survive.

6

Selgovae,

Scottish Space HQ 19/12/2007 08:08:19
Look on the bright side. Catastrophic events such as this have a way of uniting the world, overcoming centuries of division and religious prejudice. Scotland has a chance to be at the forefront of the effort to save the planet. Imagine it! Children in the back streets of Calcutta waving Saltires and men on camels in the Arabian desert singing Flower of Scotland.

But we have to act quickly. I suggest Ford Kiernan for the leading role.
7

Sinnerman,

Another Planet 19/12/2007 10:20:25
Don't leave home without your umbrella.

 

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