Giant Asteroid May Plough Into Mars

Original story here

Mars could be struck by a massive asteroid, experts have warned.

Scientists say there is now a 1 in 75 chance the huge chunk of rock could slam into the red planet next month.

They had initially placed odds of a direct hit at 1 in 350.

"These odds are extremely unusual," said Steve Chesley, an astronomer with the Near Earth Object Programme at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory.

"We frequently work with really long odds when we track threatening asteroids."

If a collision does take place, the explosion that follows could be like the famous 1908 Tunguska incident.

That blast, in central Siberia, wiped out 60 million trees and unleashed the energy equivalent to a 15-megaton nuclear bomb.

The new asteroid, known as 2007 WD5, was discovered last month and is similar in size to the Tunguska object.

Anyone else heard of this?

EDIT: Some additional information from NASA

Nope, but wouldn't that be class, it would be visible through telescopes from here, lets hope it happens !!! :shock:

A collision like this would also be much closer to home (unlike the Jupiter collision). It might even send a stark message to the governments of Earth of what awaits us eventually if we don't start putting some plans, resourses and of course decent money into some Earth asteroid defense systems.
Would be cool to watch through a scope though but would probably wipe out all surface details for a few months (years)?

The good thing, as John said, is that as it's closer to home (if the event happens), then we get a closer, and more direct view, of what happens with a solid body, unlike Jupiter. That will be a good lesson for world leaders to see what could happen here. Add to the equation that we have Martian meteorites on Earth already that were most likely sent here from the same kind of event, means we might get new ones in the coming decades.

Seanie.

well, we have more info
www.skyandtelescope.com/observing/home/12083136.html

asteroid it is, giant it isnt, we wont be able to see the impact through a telescope from here.

By the time they have finished doing their sums "1 in 75" will have become "1 in 75,000,000,000,000".

As usual.

Yawn.

Peter.