Giant Asteroid May Plough Into Mars

January 2nd updates relating to this event…
Don Yeomans, Paul Chodas and Steve Chesley
NASA/JPL Near-Earth Object Program Office
January 2, 2008

“Additional position observations for asteroid 2007 WD5 taken on December 29 through January 2 have been used to improve the accuracy of the asteroid's orbit. As a result, the range of possible paths past Mars has narrowed by a factor of 3 and the most likely path has moved a little farther away from the planet, causing the Mars impact probability to decrease slightly to 3.6% (about one chance in 28). The new positional observations were made using the 2.4 meter telescope at New Mexico Tech's Magdalena Ridge Observatory and reported by astronomer Bill Ryan. It seems likely that as additional observations further shrink the uncertainty region of this asteroid, the region will no longer intersect Mars and the impact probability will quickly drop to zero”.

neo.jpl.nasa.gov/news/news154.html


Forget about the rovers; let’s hope it doesn’t hit those wonderful pyramids and the face structure on the Cydonia region : :

Clear skies
Mike

Sorry to burst yer bubble lads but i'm afraid that the chances of it hitting now are....... well........ nearly none. Just read this :

www.universetoday.com/2008/01/10/asteroid-wont-hit-mars/

Drats......................

So if it is only gonna miss the centre of Mars by 26,000

Isnt there a chance it could hit Jupiter?

A far less spectacular event (as Jupiter will just suck it in).................but an event none the less.

Isnt there a chance it could hit Jupiter?

A far less spectacular event (as Jupiter will just suck it in).................but an event none the less.

Don't discount that. I have photos from the ESA they gave out at the time of Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 in July 1994. Some of those small pieces left quite a dent in Jupiter's gaseous atmosphere. :shock:

I have to agree with John D, it wont hit Mars - because Mars is a teeny weeny tiny thing. (I know caus thats what it looks like in my telescope) sob sob



"I would rather have a full bottle in front of me, than a full frontal lobotomy"

Isnt there a chance it could hit Jupiter?

There is zero chance of WD5 hitting Jupiter. 2007 WD5 is an Apollo asteroid with an Earth and Mars crossing orbit, but it does not get out as far as Jupiter at any time.

See

ssd.jpl.nasa.gov/sbdb.cgi?sstr=2005 WJ56;orb=1