Apophis, Greek for The Destroyer E.T.A .2036

[martus]

Anxious Eyes Tracking DOOMSDAY ASTEROID

Observatory at CSI among those monitoring a possible collision course
with earth

It's been said the only two things in life that are certain are death
and taxes.

If an asteroid aimed frighteningly close to the Home Planet keeps to
its path on April 13, 2036, then well, forget the taxes.

The scenario is not science fiction.

"The destruction is enormous [if it hits Earth]," said Dr. Irving
Robbins of South Beach, director of the College of Staten Island
Astrophysical Observatory in Willowbrook. "We have to watch that very
closely. We shouldn't be an ostrich and stick our head in the ground."

The CSI observatory -- funded by NASA and the National Science
Foundation and commissioned by the International Astronomical Union --
does research to discover and monitor asteroids and comets, defined as
Near Earth Objects.

If you like to gamble, scientists have predicted the probability of a
direct hit in 2036 as 1 in 6,250 -- about the same likelihood as being
involved in a train wreck.

Compare that to these odds: The chance of winning the New York Lotto
jackpot is 1 in 18,000,000, the chance of being struck by lightning is
1 in 576,000 and the likelihood of being killed in a car accident is 1
in 5,000.

The asteroid -- appropriately named Apophis, Greek for The Destroyer --
could squeeze past within a couple hundred thousand miles -- but even a
tiny change in its course in the other direction could have dire
consequences, Robbins said.

"From a space point of view, [200,000 miles is] very, very close," he
said.

Robbins estimated that the asteroid is traveling at a speed of 25,000
mph to 100,000 mph and packs enough energy to equal "millions or
billions" of atomic bombs. A direct hit would wreak havoc with the
Earth's atmosphere, cause a "tremendous amount" of acid rain and spread
fire all over the planet.

"If could be global," he said.

Can anything be done to divert it?

One possibility is to send a manned mission to space and use a rocket
to steer it away, Robbins said. But that won't happen unless time and
resources are devoted to studying space objects.

Earth is overdue for a devastating impact, he noted.

"We're going to get another big hit," he said. "Let's do something
about it."

_______________________________________________________________________

Find this interesting for 3 reasons:

1.............The following passage states a star will fall to heaven
and rupture the earth. The star is called Apollyon meaning destroyer,
very similar/if not the same to the name of this asteroid just the
english for the greek word is different due to the translaters trying
to pronounce the Greek word as it would be written in English.

Revelation 9:1-11 (NIV)
9 The fifth angel sounded his trumpet, and I saw a star that had
fallen from the sky to the earth. The star was given the key to the
shaft of the Abyss. 2 When he opened the Abyss, smoke rose from it like
the smoke from a gigantic furnace. The sun and sky were darkened by the
smoke from the Abyss. 3 And out of the smoke locusts came down upon the
earth and were given power like that of scorpions of the earth. 4 They
were told not to harm the grass of the earth or any plant or tree, but
only those people who did not have the seal of God on their foreheads.
5 They were not given power to kill them, but only to torture them for
five months. And the agony they suffered was like that of the sting of
a scorpion when it strikes a man. 6 During those days men will seek
death, but will not find it; they will long to die, but death will
elude them.

7 The locusts looked like horses prepared for battle. On their heads
they wore something like crowns of gold, and their faces resembled
human faces. 8 Their hair was like women's hair, and their teeth were
like lions' teeth. 9 They had breastplates like breastplates of iron,
and the sound of their wings was like the thundering of many horses and
chariots rushing into battle. 10 They had tails and stings like
scorpions, and in their tails they had power to torment people for five
months. 11 They had as king over them the angel of the Abyss, whose
name in Hebrew is Abaddon, and in Greek, Apollyon.b

b Abaddon and Apollyon mean Destroyer.

The Holy Bible : New International Version. 1996, c1984. Zondervan:
Grand Rapids



2...............Daniel predicts a huge rock will destroy the kingdoms
of the earth, a rock not carved by human hands, before God's kingdom
will rule the world by the return of God's people after the event while
the goddless(demons and fallen angels are not God) have been destroyed
by that rock.


Daniel 2:31-45 (NIV)


31 "You looked, O king, and there before you stood a large
statue-an enormous, dazzling statue, awesome in appearance. 32 The
head of the statue was made of pure gold, its chest and arms of silver,
its belly and thighs of bronze, 33 its legs of iron, its feet partly of
iron and partly of baked clay. 34 While you were watching, a rock was
cut out, but not by human hands. It struck the statue on its feet of
iron and clay and smashed them. 35 Then the iron, the clay, the bronze,
the silver and the gold were broken to pieces at the same time and
became like chaff on a threshing floor in the summer. The wind swept
them away without leaving a trace. But the rock that struck the statue
became a huge mountain and filled the whole earth.

36 "This was the dream, and now we will interpret it to the king. 37
You, O king, are the king of kings. The God of heaven has given you
dominion and power and might and glory; 38 in your hands he has placed
mankind and the beasts of the field and the birds of the air. Wherever
they live, he has made you ruler over them all. You are that head of
gold.

39 "After you, another kingdom will rise, inferior to yours. Next, a
third kingdom, one of bronze, will rule over the whole earth. 40
Finally, there will be a fourth kingdom, strong as iron-for iron
breaks and smashes everything-and as iron breaks things to pieces, so
it will crush and break all the others. 41 Just as you saw that the
feet and toes were partly of baked clay and partly of iron, so this
will be a divided kingdom; yet it will have some of the strength of
iron in it, even as you saw iron mixed with clay. 42 As the toes were
partly iron and partly clay, so this kingdom will be partly strong and
partly brittle. 43 And just as you saw the iron mixed with baked clay,
so the people will be a mixture and will not remain united, any more
than iron mixes with clay.

44 "In the time of those kings, the God of heaven will set up a
kingdom that will never be destroyed, nor will it be left to another
people. It will crush all those kingdoms and bring them to an end, but
it will itself endure forever. 45 This is the meaning of the vision of
the rock cut out of a mountain, but not by human hands-a rock that
broke the iron, the bronze, the clay, the silver and the gold to
pieces.

"The great God has shown the king what will take place in the future.
The dream is true and the interpretation is trustworthy."

The Holy Bible : New International Version. 1996, c1984. Zondervan:
Grand Rapids




3...............The asteroid is expected to hit around 2036, close to
the expect time of Christ's return in 2030. I'll explain why below.

When did people have new life put into them, it was with the coming of
the Holy Spirit which was almost 2000 years ago in 30AD. To God one day
is the same as a thousand years our time, Hosea says in 2 days God will
put new life into us, 2000 years of the Holy Spirit in the believers
lives takes us up to 2030 and then we are raised up to God's presence.


Hosea 6:2-3 (NCV)
2 In two days he will put new life in us;
on the third day he will raise us up
so that we may live in his presence
3 and know him.

Let's try to learn about the Lord;
He will come to us as surely as the dawn comes.
He will come to us like rain,
like the spring rain that waters the ground."


2 Peter 3:8-9 (NCV)
8 But do not forget this one thing, dear friends: To the Lord one day
is as a thousand years, and a thousand years is as one day. 9 The Lord
is not slow in doing what he promised-the way some people understand
slowness. But God is being patient with you. He does not want anyone to
be lost, but he wants all people to change their hearts and lives.




End times
http://mart1963.tripod.com/index.htm

[martus]

99942 Apophis (previously better known by its provisional designation
2004 MN4) is a Near-Earth asteroid that caused a brief period of
concern in December 2004 because initial observations indicated a
relatively large probability that it would strike the Earth in 2029.
However, additional observations provided improved predictions that
eliminated the possibility of an impact on Earth or the Moon in 2029. A
future impact on April 13, 2036, is still possible, keeping the
asteroid at level 1 on the Torino impact hazard scale as of February
2006, with an estimated impact-probability of 1 in 5,880.

Contents [hide]
1 Basic data
1.1 Discovery
1.2 Naming
2 Close approaches
2.1 History of estimates
2.2 Possible impact effects
3 See also
4 References
5 External links
5.1 Risk assessment
5.2 ESA
5.3 NASA
5.4 Older articles
5.5 More recent articles



[edit]
Basic data
Apophis belongs to a group called the "Aten asteroids", asteroids with
an orbital semi-major axis less than one astronomical unit. This
particular one has an orbital period about the Sun of 323 days, and its
path brings it across Earth's orbit twice on each passage around the
Sun.

Based upon the observed brightness, Apophis's length was estimated at
415 m (1350 ft); a more refined estimate based on spectroscopic
observations at NASA's Infrared Telescope Facility in Hawaii by Binzel,
Rivkin, Bus, and Tokunaga (2005) is 320 m (1050 ft). Its mass is
estimated to be 4.6×1010 kg.

As of February 2005 it is predicted that the asteroid will pass about
36,350 km (22,600 mi) from the Earth's surface on April 13, 2029,
slightly higher than the altitude of geosynchronous satellites, which
is 35,786 km (22,300 mi). Its brightness will be about magnitude 3.3,
with a peak angular speed of 42° per hour. Such a close approach by an
asteroid of this size is expected to occur only every 1,300 years or
so. The maximum apparent angular diameter will be only 2 arcseconds,
which means it will be a starlike point of light in all but the very
largest telescopes.

[edit]
Discovery
Apophis was discovered on June 19, 2004, by Roy A. Tucker, David J.
Tholen, and Fabrizio Bernardi of the NASA-funded University of Hawaii
Asteroid Survey from Kitt Peak National Observatory in Arizona. This
group observed for two nights. The new object received the provisional
designation 2004 MN4, and naturally did not yet have its current name.

On December 18, the object was rediscovered from Australia by Gordon
Garradd of the Siding Spring Survey, another NASA-funded NEA survey.
Further observations from around the globe over the next several days
allowed the Minor Planet Center to confirm the connection to the June
discovery.

[edit]
Naming
When first discovered, the object received the provisional designation
2004 MN4 (sometimes written 2004 MN4), and news and scientific articles
about it referred to it by that name. When its orbit was sufficiently
well calculated it received the permanent number 99942 (on June 24,
2005), the first numbered asteroid with Earth-impact solutions.
Receiving a permanent number made it eligible for naming, and it
promptly received the name "Apophis" as of July 19, 2005. Apophis is
the Greek name of the Ancient Egyptian god Apep, "the Destroyer", who
dwells in the eternal darkness of the Duat (underworld) and tries to
destroy the Sun during its nightly passage.

Although the Greek name for the mythical Egyptian god may be
appropriate, Tholen and Tucker (two of the co-discovers of the
asteroid) are reportedly fans of the TV series Stargate: SG-1. The
show's main antagonist in the first several seasons was an alien named
Apophis who took the name for the Egyptian god and sought to destroy
earth[1].Ironically, one of Apophis's plots in the TV series is to end
human civilization by hitting The Earth with a large asteroid.

[edit]
Close approaches
After the Minor Planet Center confirmed the June discovery of Apophis
(then known only as 2004 MN4), the next close approach was computed to
be April 13, 2029 by the automatic Sentry system of NASA's Near-Earth
Object Program Office. NEODyS, a similar automatic system at the
University of Pisa, Italy and the University of Valladolid, Spain also
calculated this same approach date. On that date, it will become as
bright as magnitude 3.3 (easily visible to the naked eye). This close
approach will be visible from Europe, Africa, and western Asia.
Throughout recorded history, no other closely-approaching objects of
this size have been visible to the naked eye. As a result of its close
passage, it will move from the Aten (see below) to the Apollo class.

After the June discovery was confirmed, observatories throughout the
world computed the probability of impact. Over the next several days,
additional observations allowed for astronomers to narrow the cone of
error. As they did, the probability of an impact event climbed, peaking
at 2.7 % (1 in 37). Combined with its size, this caused Apophis to be
assessed at level four out of ten on the Torino Impact Hazard Scale and
1.10 on the Palermo scale, scales scientists use to represent the
danger of an asteroid hitting Earth. These are the highest values for
which any object has been rated on either scale.

Precovery observations from March 15, 2004 were identified on December
27, and an improved orbit was computed [2]. The 2029 pass will actually
be much closer than the first predictions (as close as a geosynchronous
satellite), but the uncertainty is so much smaller that the risk of
impact then went away. A pass on April 13, 2036 will still carry some
risk. As of September 2005, the odds of impact on that date is 0.018 %
(1 in 5,560) and the Palermo scale rating for Apophis is -1.35 and
the Torino scale rating is 1.

Apophis remains at level one on the Torino scale because of a very low
but non-zero probability of impact in 2036. However, the approach in
2029 will substantially alter the object's orbit, making predictions
uncertain without more data. "If we get radar ranging in 2013 [the next
good opportunity], we should be able to predict the location of 2004
MN4 out to at least 2070." said Jon Giorgini of JPL [3].

In July 2005, former Apollo astronaut Rusty Schweickart, as chairman of
the B612 Foundation, formally asked NASA to investigate the possibility
that the asteroid's post-2029 orbit could be in orbital resonance with
the Earth, which would increase the probability of future impacts. For
this to happen, Apophis would have to pass precisely through a certain
very narrow region of space during the 2029 close approach, a
"gravitational keyhole" no more than about 600 m across. Schweickart
asked for an investigation of the necessity of placing a transponder on
the asteroid for more accurate tracking of how its orbit is affected by
the Yarkovsky effect [4].

[edit]
History of estimates
The original NASA report on December 24, 2004, mentioned impact chances
of "around 1 in 300", which was widely reported in the media. The
actual NASA estimates at the time were 1 in 233; they resulted in the
Torino scale rating of 2, the first time any asteroid had received a
rating above 1.
Later that day, based on a total of 64 observations, the estimates were
changed to 1 in 62 (1.6 %), resulting in an update to the initial
report and an upgrade to a Torino scale rating of 4.
On December 25, the chances were first reported as 1 in 42 (2.4 %) and
later that day (based on 101 observations) as 1 in 45 (2.2 %). At the
same time, the asteroid's estimated diameter was lowered from 440 m to
390 m and its mass from 1.2×1011 kg to 8.3×1010 kg.
On December 26 (based on a total of 169 observations), the impact
probability was still estimated as 1 in 45 (2.2 %), the estimates for
diameter and mass were lowered to 380 m and 7.5×1010 kg, respectively.

On December 27 (based on a total of 176 observations), the impact
probability was raised to 1 in 37 (2.7 %); diameter was increased to
390 m, and mass to 7.9×1010 kg.
On December 27 in the afternoon, a precovery increased the span of
observations to 287 days and allowed more accurate calculations to
re-rate the asteroid's 2029 approach as level zero on the Torino scale
(no threat). The cumulative impact probability was estimated to be
around 0.004 %, a lower risk than asteroid 2004 VD17, which once again
became the greatest risk object (a position it had held since late
November 2004). A 2053 approach to the earth still poses a minor risk
of impact, and Apophis was still rated at level one on the Torino scale
for this orbit.
On December 28 at 12:23 GMT and (based on a total of 139 observations),
produced a value of one on the Torino scale for 2044-04-13.29 and
2053-04-13.51.
By 01:10 GMT on December 29 the only pass rated 1 on the Torino scale
was for 2053-04-13.51 based on 139 observations spanning 287.71 days
(2004-Mar-15.1104 to 2004-Dec-27.8243).
By 19:18 GMT on December 29 this was still the case based upon 147
observations spanning 288.92 days (2004-Mar-15.1104 to
2004-Dec-29.02821), though the close encounters have changed and been
reduced to 4 in total.
By 13:46 GMT on December 30 no passes were rated above 0, based upon
157 observations spanning 289.33 days (2004-Mar-15.1104 to
2004-Dec-29.44434). The most dangerous pass was rated at 1 in
7,143,000.
By 22:34 GMT on December 30, 157 observations spanning 289.33 days
(2004-Mar-15.1104 to 2004-Dec-29.44434). One pass at 1 (Torino Scale) 3
other passes.
By 03:57 GMT on January 2, 2005, 182 observations spanning 290.97 days
(2004-Mar-15.1104 to 2004-Dec-31.07992) One pass at 1 (Torino Scale) 19
other passes.
By 14:49 GMT on January 3, 204 observations spanning 292.72 days
(2004-Mar-15.1104 to 2005-Jan-01.82787) One pass at 1 (Torino Scale) 15
other passes.
Extremely precise radar observations at Arecibo Observatory on January
27, 28, and 30 refine the orbit further and show that the April, 2029
close approach will occur at only 5.6 Earth radii, approximately
one-half the distance previously estimated.
A radar observation on August 7, 2005, refines the orbit further and
eliminates the possibility of an impact in 2035. Only the pass in 2036
remains at Torino Scale 1.
[edit]
Possible impact effects
It must be stressed that the odds of impact are now known to be very
low. Hence, the possible effects of an impact are largely irrelevant.

However, the initial reports resulted in widespread discussion on many
Internet forums, including armchair speculation about exactly where
Apophis (then known only as 2004 MN4) would hit and what would happen
when it did.

NASA initially estimated the energy that Apophis would have released if
it impacted Earth as the equivalent of 1480 megatons of TNT (114,000
times the energy from the nuclear bomb Little Boy, dropped by the
United States on Hiroshima, Japan). A more refined later estimate was
870 megatons[citation needed] (which is still around 65,500 times the
energy of the bomb mentioned above). The impacts which created the
Barringer Crater or caused the Tunguska event are estimated to be in
the 10-20 megaton range. The 1883 eruption of Krakatoa was the
equivalent of roughly 200 megatons.

The exact effects of any impact would have varied based on the
asteroid's composition, and the location and angle of impact. Any
impact would have been extremely detrimental to an area of thousands of
square kilometres, but would have been unlikely to have long-lasting
global effects, such as the precipitation of an impact winter.

If impact were to occur during the 2029 close approach, based on the
predicted time of approach (0.89 of a day, or about 21:20 UTC) and the
fact that the asteroid would be approaching the Earth from outside of
its orbit, the impact would likely occur in the Eastern Hemisphere
(time zones UTC +3 to UTC +10). Any potential impact would occur at a
velocity of 12.59 km/s.

[martus]

Apollyon & Apophis are the same.

The name of Apollo in Greek also translates as "destroyer," and another
Greek name based on this same word is Apollyon, the destroyer from the
pit in Revelation 9:11. These names are all the same, and the indicate
different versions of the same basic character.

The final two Greek incarnations of Apep are Apophis and Apollyon.
Apophis is a generic terrible destroyer in the Olympian mythos, and
Apollyon is the same character but in the Christian setting of the
Revelation of St. John.

This destroyer Apollyon(asteroid) is set to arrive in 2029 and with all
my understanding Jesus is set to return in 2030. Seems to me this will
be a major impact by the asteroid as they first guessed and not just a
close miss. God people will be saved before the destruction caused by
this asteroid to be returned to earth with Jesus setting up the
millenium kingdom on earth.

(See first post)

[martus]

So where is Apophis(Apollyon) the Destroyer going to hit!

First clue:
If impact were to occur during the 2029 close approach, based on the
predicted time of approach (0.89 of a day, or about 21:20 UTC) and the
fact that the asteroid would be approaching the Earth from outside of
its orbit, the impact would likely occur in the Eastern Hemisphere
(time zones UTC +3 to UTC +10). Any potential impact would occur at a
velocity of 12.59 km/s.

Second clue from the bible predicts it will hit the sea causing world
wide devastation:
Revelation 8:8 The second angel sounded his trumpet, and something like
a huge mountain, all ablaze, was thrown into the sea. A third of the
sea turned into blood, 9 a third of the living creatures in the sea
died, and a third of the ships were destroyed.

End times:
http://mart1963.tripod.com/index.htm

[martus]

Isaiah 24:17-23 (NIV)


17 Terror and pit and snare await you,

O people of the earth.

18 Whoever flees at the sound of terror

will fall into a pit;

whoever climbs out of the pit

will be caught in a snare.

The floodgates of the heavens are opened,

the foundations of the earth shake.

19 The earth is broken up,

the earth is split asunder,

the earth is thoroughly shaken.

20 The earth reels like a drunkard,

it sways like a hut in the wind;

so heavy upon it is the guilt of its rebellion

that it falls-never to rise again.

21 In that day the Lord will punish

the powers in the heavens above

and the kings on the earth below.

22 They will be herded together

like prisoners bound in a dungeon;

they will be shut up in prison

and be punisheda after many days.

23 The moon will be abashed, the sun ashamed;

for the Lord Almighty will reign

on Mount Zion and in Jerusalem,

and before its elders, gloriously.

[1]
a Or released

[1] The Holy Bible : New International Version. 1996, c1984. Zondervan:
Grand Rapids

[martus]

Astronomers watch the skies for threat of deadly impact
By Bruce Lieberman

Shortly after sunset Friday, April 13, 2029, if the sky is clear
enough, people across Europe and North Africa will see an asteroid
appear as a bright point of light flying 19,400 miles overhead before
it disappears silently below the western horizon.

A short time later, if astronomers' worst fears are realized, the
asteroid will pass through a region of space less than 2,000 feet
across. At that place, the gravitational pull of Earth will yank the
asteroid into a new orbit around the sun - and on a collision course
with Earth seven years later.

It all sounds like the premise of "Armageddon," "Deep Impact" or some
other blockbuster Hollywood film. But the asteroid, named 99942
Apophis, is science fact, not science fiction. In December 2004,
astronomers caused a brief stir when their calculations estimated that
the newly discovered asteroid - named after the ancient Egyptian god,
Apep, the Destroyer - might collide with Earth in 2029.

Additional tracking data quickly ruled out the possibility of a 2029
collision. But the potential for a strike in 2036, should the asteroid
enter that crucial gravitational space, places it at the top of NASA's
list of 3,800 near-Earth asteroids the agency has identified.

Based on the latest information, the asteroid, which is nearly twice
the size of a typical football stadium, has a 1-in-6,250 chance of
colliding with Earth on April 13, 2036.

"We're very concerned that people put this in perspective," said
Russell Schweickart, a former Apollo astronaut and head of a foundation
that focuses public attention on the threat from asteroids and comets.

"This is not something to lose sleep over, (but) it is something the
government needs to attend to."

Right now, NASA is doing little more than looking for asteroids and
keeping track of them, Schweickart said. Plans to deflect Apophis, if
it becomes necessary, exist only in the pages of a few academic papers.

Last year, Schweickart's group, the B612 Foundation - named for the
asteroid in the book, "The Little Prince" - corresponded with NASA
officials about the threat of Apophis.

"It would have devastating consequences if it hit," Schweickart wrote.
"There is the serious question of whether, if it is headed toward
impact, we will know enough to make a timely decision."

Schweickart and other scientists urged NASA to place a data-tracking
radio transponder on the asteroid's surface by 2014.

A transponder would help nail down orbital alterations caused by a
phenomenon called the Yarkovsky effect. This is produced when an
asteroid absorbs energy from the sun and re-radiates it back into space
as heat. With one side of the asteroid lit and the other in darkness,
the imbalance in thermal radiation produces a tiny acceleration. A
transponder would help scientists understand how the Yarkovsky effect
is influencing the asteroid's orbit.

NASA responded to the urging with a wait-and-see proposal. "We conclude
a space mission based solely on any perceived collision hazard is not
warranted at this time," wrote Mary L. Cleave, associate administrator
for NASA's science mission directorate.

The agency believes continued optical and radio telescope observations
will rule out Apophis as a threat. If not, NASA would launch a mission
to the asteroid by 2018. A radio transponder, placed either in orbit or
on its surface, would determine the asteroid's position in 2029 down to
a few hundred feet, according to NASA.

If an impact seems probable, a rocket would be launched to deflect the
asteroid. The design phase would have to be completed by 2020 in order
to launch by 2024, NASA noted.

Schweickart said he doesn't necessarily disagree with NASA's analysis,
as long as the agency can design, build, launch and successfully
complete such a mission before 2029. "The danger is being overly
optimistic about how long it takes to do that."

If a deflection mission becomes necessary, scientists agree, it will
need to be completed before 2029 when Apophis would commit itself to a
future collision course. Due to the physics of gravity and orbital
mechanics, delaying action would require much, much more energy to move
the asteroid.

"That (will be) an impossible task, I'll tell you right now,"
Schweickart said.

COSMIC PINBALL

The threat of an asteroid strike has always been with us. More than 4
billion years ago, a lot of debris was left over after the ring of gas
and dust swirling around a young sun coalesced into planets and moons.

In their lonely roundabouts through the void, these leftovers -
asteroids and comets - sometimes pass close to a planet, like two race
cars converging as they circle a track.

During a close encounter, the larger object - a planet, for example -
can yank the smaller one - an asteroid - out of its orbit. As the two
part ways, there is a slight chance that the asteroid will pass through
a region of space - astronomers call it a keyhole - where the planet's
gravitational pull can alter the asteroid's orbit, setting them on a
future collision course.

The physics of this "keyhole" phenomenon are well understood.

"Based on current knowledge of the orbit of Apophis, we cannot exclude
the possibility of it passing through a keyhole and hitting Earth on a
subsequent pass," NASA scientist David Morrison concluded in an article
last summer.

Most of the rubble in the solar system is the size of pebbles, even
smaller. When these bits collide with Earth, they burn up high in the
atmosphere and appear from the ground as streaks of light - shooting
stars.

But there are others much, much larger.

Scientists estimate that an asteroid about 7.5 miles in diameter struck
the Yucatan Peninsula 65 million years ago, causing or at least
contributing to the extinction of the dinosaurs and reshaping
evolution.

The consequences of such a strike today remain staggering. "Material
thrown out of the Earth's atmosphere would rain back toward the ground,
filling the sky with blazing fireballs and incinerating an area perhaps
as large as India or twice the size of Europe," suggests Mark Chapman,
an astronomer at the Southwest Research Institute in Boulder, Colo.
Dust from such a blast would block sunlight for many months, killing
plant and animal life.

In 1998, Congress directed NASA to find and track, by 2008, 90 percent
of inner solar system asteroids more than two-thirds of a mile in
diameter. Of 3,800 or so asteroids now tracked by NASA, 824 are in this
category, but none appears to pose a threat to Earth for at least
another 100 years.

Astronomers estimate there may be hundreds of thousands of asteroids in
the inner solar system that are much smaller. Of the 3,800, 748 are
designated "potentially hazardous" because they come within 4.6 million
miles of Earth's orbital path and are larger than 500 feet in diameter.
Apophis, at 1,050 feet, is one of these.

Chapman has estimated the chances of a strike by an asteroid more than
two-thirds of a mile in diameter during this century at 0.02 percent,
and a smaller one like Apophis at 0.2 to 1.0 percent.

If Apophis assumes a collision course, it would crash into Earth's
atmosphere at about 28,000 miles per hour and explode with a force of
an 870-megaton blast - an explosion 58,000 times more powerful than the
bomb dropped on Hiroshima.

Apophis would likely hit along a narrow corridor in the Pacific Ocean,
sending monstrous tsunami waves toward the West Coast, the B612
Foundation has estimated. Immediate damage in the U.S. - independent of
deaths and subsequent economic fallout - could top $400 billion.

GRAVITY TOW

Two astronomers have proposed an alternative to such a catastrophe.

Edward T. Lu and Stanley G. Love of NASA's Johnson Space Center suggest
parking an unmanned spacecraft beside a threatening asteroid - in
essence flying in formation with the rock.

Any object with mass exerts gravity, so the spacecraft - without
touching the asteroid - could over time drag the asteroid slightly off
its orbital path.

"The spacecraft will simply hover above the surface," Lu and Love wrote
in Nature in November. "The spacecraft will tow the asteroid with no
physical attachment, using gravity as a towline."

A 1-ton gravitational tractor could sufficiently divert Apophis outside
the keyhole by hovering next to it for about a month, Lu and Love said.

A gravity tow approach would avoid the risks associated with pushing or
crashing into the asteroid, which might destabilize it and break it
apart.

"It's a completely controlled deflection method," Schweickart said.

As scientists ponder that proposal, time marches on toward 2029 and
2036. Beginning this year, astronomers will lose visual and radar
contact with Apophis, and the asteroid will not become visible again
until 2013.

"We'll go many years with basically no additional information on where
it's headed," Schweickart said.

Schweickart, Chapman and others have noted that for the first time in
history humans have the ability to do something about this impending
threat now 40 million miles from Earth.

"An impact can be predicted in advance in ways that are imperfect,"
Chapman wrote. "(But) in contrast with the dinosaurs, human beings have
the insight and capability to avoid extinction."

Whether they will do that is not yet clear, Schweickart said. Soon, he
plans to speak about the issue at a United Nations meeting in Vienna
and is continuing discussions with NASA. Even if Apophis eludes Earth,
he emphasizes, it won't be the last dangerous asteroid headed for
Earth.

"We need to know about them, and at the same time we need to be
developing the technology (to divert one), and somebody needs to be in
charge," he said.

"I can say that till I'm blue in the face, but it doesn't make any
difference if there isn't anybody with the responsibility to do it."

Copyright © 2006 Paramus Post


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End times:
http://mart1963.tripod.com/index.htm

[martus]

Underground Facilities Thwart America's Probing Eyes
Deeply Buried WMD Development Centers Are High-Level Concern
Beginning with the launch of America's first reconnaissance satellite
in 1959, the U.S. intelligence community has been able to assess enemy
build-ups, verify arms control agreements and even monitor crop growth.
Today, however, America's ability to gather needed intelligence on
contemporary threats from its current constellation of reconnaissance
satellites and aircraft is increasing challenged by the growing
sophistication and sheer prevalence of underground facilities (UGFs)
used by many states to conceal weapons development programs, especially
those associated with nuclear, chemical and biological weapons.

The last 15 years have witnessed a convergence of the proliferation of
weapons of mass destruction, the rise of terrorism, and the growing use
of intricate cave complexes and UGFs by foreign states and terror
groups. Together, these issues pose a new and challenging danger that
America's current space-based intelligence and reconnaissance
satellites are ill equipped to monitor.


______________________________________________________________________

Revelation 6:13-17 (KJV)


13 And the stars of heaven fell unto the earth, even as a fig tree
casteth her untimely figsc, when she is shaken of a mighty wind. 14 And
the heaven departed as a scroll when it is rolled together; and every
mountain and island were moved out of their places. 15 And the kings of
the earth, and the great men, and the rich men, and the chief captains,
and the mighty men, and every bondman, and every free man, hid
themselves in the dens and in the rocks of the mountains; 16 And said
to the mountains and rocks, Fall on us, and hide us from the face of
him that sitteth on the throne, and from the wrath of the Lamb: 17 For
the great day of his wrath is come; and who shall be able to stand?


[1]
c untimely figs: or, green figs

[1] The Holy Bible : King James Version. 1995. Logos Research Systems,
Inc.: Oak Harbor, WA


End times:
http://mart1963.tripod.com/index.htm