16 Psyche is believed to be the core of a dead planet. NASA plans to explore asteroid 16 Psyche – long thought to be the core of a dead planet – in 2022 to determine if it actually contains the precious metal. worth 10 trillion USD, which means making everyone on Earth a billionaire or not. Before that time, however, a new study suggests that 16 Psyche is more than likely just a pile of debris. Research published in the journal Planetary Science shows that 16 Psyche is composed of 82.5% metal, 7% iron content pyroxene and 10.5% carbon chondrite. It can also have a bulk density – i.e. the degree of free space inside – of 35%. These numbers are much lower than previous estimates that said it could contain up to 95% metals, mainly iron, nickel and gold. NASA has planned to probe the asteroid 16 Psyche, which is said to be filled with iron, gold, nickel and platinum, in 2022. The study’s lead author, David Cantillo, a senior at UA Arizona University, said in a statement: “The drop in metal content and bulk density is interesting because it shows that 16 Psyche is very strong. different than previously thought”. “It would come as a surprise to see Psyche as a pile of debris, but our data continue to show low bulk density estimates despite its high metal content,” Cantillo said. If the “gold-filled” asteroid was more like a wreck and had less metal inside, as Cantillo and other researchers believe, it wouldn’t be that different from other asteroids in the Solar System, for example. like the asteroid Bennu. Now, NASA’s OSIRIS-REx mission recently embarked on a 2.2 billion-kilometer journey back to Earth after collecting nearly 1kg of rock and dust from Bennu, which could help shed light on how the Solar System formed. . To arrive at their new discovery, the researchers reconstructed the surface of 16 Psyche in the lab, mixing the different ingredients until the patterns of visible light matched those of the asteroid. “Having a lower metal content than previously thought means the asteroid may have collided with asteroids containing more common carbon chondrites, depositing a surface layer,” Cantillo said. that we are observing”. However, NASA notes 16 Psyche remains a major concern for scientists. It is the 16th asteroid discovered on March 17, 1852 by the Italian astronomer, Annibale de Gasparis. 16 Psyche takes about 5 years to orbit the Sun once, but only 4 hours to rotate on its axis, making the day on this asteroid only 1/6th of the day on Earth. According to EarthSky.org, 16 Psyche has a diameter of 182 km, containing 1% of all metals in the asteroid belt. Watch a simulation video of asteroid 16 Psyche (Source Daily Mail) Even if 16 Psyche is worth less than the $10 trillion figure, it’s still valuable to researchers hoping to learn more about what they believe to be the remains of a long-dead planet. . Study author Cantillo said: “The opportunity to study the exposed core of a planet is extremely rare, which is why they sent spacecraft missions there, but our work shows that 16 Psyche is much more interesting than anticipated.” The researchers also believe that there is water on 16 Psyche’s surface, so they will look to merge their data with other missions to asteroids to determine how much water is present. The $117 million spacecraft — which NASA began building in July 2020 — will go into space aboard a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket. It is expected to reach asteroid 16 Psyche in the asteroid belt in early 2026. The spacecraft will travel for 21 months in asteroid orbit, mapping and studying the properties of the giant meteorite, with the goal of determining if it is indeed the core of a planet. Asteroid 16 Psyche has long been thought to contain large amounts of iron, nickel, gold and platinum. The Metal World of 16 Psyche 16 Psyche is located in the large asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter, and may have started as a planet, before it was partially destroyed during the formation of the Solar System. It is now a 200km-wide block of metal, made up of iron, nickel and several other rare metals, including gold, platinum and copper. Thus, it could provide a unique view of the violent collisions that created the Earth and the planets. NASA’s mission will seek to determine whether Psyche was the core of an early planet, how old it is, whether it formed in ways similar to Earth’s core and its surface. how. NASA will send an unmanned spacecraft mission to 16 Psyche, scheduled to launch in August 2022. 16 Psyche, which could be 370 million kilometers away from Earth, is one of the most mysterious objects in our Solar System, and scientists may soon get a close-up look thanks to a newly identified NASA mission take. If the asteroid could be transported back to Earth, the iron alone would be worth $10 trillion. Its value would be large enough to destroy commodity prices and cause the world economy – worth $73.7 trillion – to collapse. Assuming the market for material from asteroid 16 Psyche is returned to Earth, this could cause the value of precious metals to plummet, completely devaluing all holdings including those of governments and all companies engaged in the exploitation, distribution and sale of such commodities.

16 Psyche is believed to be the core of a dead planet. NASA plans to explore asteroid 16 Psyche – long thought to be the core of a dead planet – in 2022 to determine if it actually contains the precious metal. worth 10 trillion USD, which means making everyone on Earth a billionaire or not. Before that time, however, a new study suggests that 16 Psyche is more than likely just a pile of debris. Research published in the journal Planetary Science shows that 16 Psyche is composed of 82.5% metal, 7% iron content pyroxene and 10.5% carbon chondrite. It can also have a bulk density – i.e. the degree of free space inside – of 35%. These numbers are much lower than previous estimates that said it could contain up to 95% metals, mainly iron, nickel and gold. NASA has planned to probe the asteroid 16 Psyche, which is said to be filled with iron, gold, nickel and platinum, in 2022. The study’s lead author, David Cantillo, a senior at UA Arizona University, said in a statement: “The drop in metal content and bulk density is interesting because it shows that 16 Psyche is very strong. different than previously thought”. “It would come as a surprise to see Psyche as a pile of debris, but our data continue to show low bulk density estimates despite its high metal content,” Cantillo said. If the “gold-filled” asteroid was more like a wreck and had less metal inside, as Cantillo and other researchers believe, it wouldn’t be that different from other asteroids in the Solar System, for example. like the asteroid Bennu. Now, NASA’s OSIRIS-REx mission recently embarked on a 2.2 billion-kilometer journey back to Earth after collecting nearly 1kg of rock and dust from Bennu, which could help shed light on how the Solar System formed. . To arrive at their new discovery, the researchers reconstructed the surface of 16 Psyche in the lab, mixing the different ingredients until the patterns of visible light matched those of the asteroid. “Having a lower metal content than previously thought means the asteroid may have collided with asteroids containing more common carbon chondrites, depositing a surface layer,” Cantillo said. that we are observing”. However, NASA notes 16 Psyche remains a major concern for scientists. It is the 16th asteroid discovered on March 17, 1852 by the Italian astronomer, Annibale de Gasparis. 16 Psyche takes about 5 years to orbit the Sun once, but only 4 hours to rotate on its axis, making the day on this asteroid only 1/6th of the day on Earth. According to EarthSky.org, 16 Psyche has a diameter of 182 km, containing 1% of all metals in the asteroid belt. Watch a simulation video of asteroid 16 Psyche (Source Daily Mail) Even if 16 Psyche is worth less than the $10 trillion figure, it’s still valuable to researchers hoping to learn more about what they believe to be the remains of a long-dead planet. . Study author Cantillo said: “The opportunity to study the exposed core of a planet is extremely rare, which is why they sent spacecraft missions there, but our work shows that 16 Psyche is much more interesting than anticipated.” The researchers also believe that there is water on 16 Psyche’s surface, so they will look to merge their data with other missions to asteroids to determine how much water is present. The $117 million spacecraft — which NASA began building in July 2020 — will go into space aboard a SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket. It is expected to reach asteroid 16 Psyche in the asteroid belt in early 2026. The spacecraft will travel for 21 months in asteroid orbit, mapping and studying the properties of the giant meteorite, with the goal of determining if it is indeed the core of a planet. Asteroid 16 Psyche has long been thought to contain large amounts of iron, nickel, gold and platinum. The Metal World of 16 Psyche 16 Psyche is located in the large asteroid belt between Mars and Jupiter, and may have started as a planet, before it was partially destroyed during the formation of the Solar System. It is now a 200km-wide block of metal, made up of iron, nickel and several other rare metals, including gold, platinum and copper. Thus, it could provide a unique view of the violent collisions that created the Earth and the planets. NASA’s mission will seek to determine whether Psyche was the core of an early planet, how old it is, whether it formed in ways similar to Earth’s core and its surface. how. NASA will send an unmanned spacecraft mission to 16 Psyche, scheduled to launch in August 2022. 16 Psyche, which could be 370 million kilometers away from Earth, is one of the most mysterious objects in our Solar System, and scientists may soon get a close-up look thanks to a newly identified NASA mission take. If the asteroid could be transported back to Earth, the iron alone would be worth $10 trillion. Its value would be large enough to destroy commodity prices and cause the world economy – worth $73.7 trillion – to collapse. Assuming the market for material from asteroid 16 Psyche is returned to Earth, this could cause the value of precious metals to plummet, completely devaluing all holdings including those of governments and all companies engaged in the exploitation, distribution and sale of such commodities.

For the past four billion years, life on Earth has been endless. But now on Earth there are only nearly 10 million species of creatures, this number is only 1% of the total number of species that have ever lived on Earth, the remaining 99% has disappeared in the long river of the Earth. Although our planet is a vibrant planet, it is very difficult for any living species to survive long on Earth. Over time, the Earth’s climate will continue to change and some ancient species have been unable to adapt to this change, leading to extinction. In addition, life on Earth could also be threatened by deadly threats from space. For example, a gamma-ray burst from a supernova could destroy Earth’s atmosphere and cause deadly cosmic radiation to reach our planet’s surface. Most life on Earth wouldn’t be able to withstand this. 450 million years ago a supernova caused the first mass extinction of the space threat on Earth. On the other hand, the impact of a giant asteroid falling to Earth will also cause drastic changes in climate, disrupt the food chain and cause mass death for life on Earth. The fifth mass extinction 65 million years ago was probably also caused by an asteroid collision. In addition to the threat from space, on Earth there may be superbugs that humans can’t fight off. Humanity also possesses nuclear weapons capable of destroying all life on Earth. Although humanity has enough intelligence to create such a powerful weapon, it is not known if humanity is intelligent enough to not use nuclear bombs on a large scale. And also for various reasons, Hawking believes that in order to continue to exist, humanity must expand its habitat into space in the future. Only by taking precautions and leaving Earth before disaster strikes and colonizing other planets can humans better cope with unknown disasters. So which planets should humans migrate to? Is there a “Second Earth” in the universe? Proxima b’s host star is Proxima Centauri – part of a trio of strange stars that scientists are still studying. The other two stars are binary – meaning they orbit the same center of gravity and are collectively known as Alpha Centauri. Although this “Second Earth” has similar properties to the Earth – where we live, Proxima b is still a mysterious and alien world. In the solar system, although life can exist on some satellites, but apart from Earth, there are no planets suitable for human existence. To achieve the goal of space colonization, we can only look beyond the extent of the familiar solar system. Current statistics show that almost every solar system has planets, and there are hundreds of billions of stars in the Milky Way, so there should be multiple targets to choose from. People need to choose rocky planets that are in the habitable zone, because only when the distance between the planet and the sun is neither too close nor too far can liquid water exist on its surface. Proxima b exists right in the middle of the habitable zone of stars, where water could theoretically exist in liquid form. Compared to our sun, Proxima Centauri’s habitable zone is very close to its host star. Scientists once believed that red dwarf stars like Proxima could not exist on habitable planets that were orbiting so close. But now, scientists think red dwarfs might be the best place to look for other habitable planets. And recently, astronomers discovered that Proxima Centauri, the closest star to our solar system, has a planet called Proxima Centauri b. This planet is a rocky planet the size of Earth and it is also in a habitable zone. Although Proxima b is the closest exoplanet to the solar system at a distance of only 4.2 light-years, humans are currently not capable of flying to this planet. Even with today’s fastest spacecraft, if we want to set foot there, it will take us tens of thousands of years to fly to Proxima b. However, humanity has never backed down from difficulties, we have been able to cross the ocean, as well as cross the distant interstellar space to reach the strange world, so it is very possible in the future , people will set foot here.

The Fukang meteorite is auctioned off. Where this extraterrestrial object originated and how was formed is still a topic of discussion among scientists. Coming from an asteroid The Fukang meteorite glows in the sunlight. The Fukang meteorite was discovered near the town of Fukang in Xinjiang, an autonomous region in northwest China, in 2000 by an unidentified hiker. Every day, this person often stops by a giant rock to have lunch and rest. Once, he was suddenly curious about the structure of this object, when he noticed that it seemed to have metal and crystal inside, so he decided to break some pieces and send it to the US for confirmation of the type. He was surprised to learn that these samples did not come from Earth, but belonged to a meteorite. In February 2005, these objects appeared at the Tucson Gem and Mineral Exhibition (USA). Here, it was noticed by Professor DS Lauretta (a specialist in Planetary Science and Astrochemistry at the University of Arizona), who is also the principal investigator of NASA’s OSIRIS-REx mission. Then, the remains of the Fukang Meteorite (with a mass of 983 kg, excluding the 20 kg mass smashed by hikers) was directly studied by the University of Arizona (USA). Scientists said that this rock belongs to the type of iron-stone meteorite, called Pallasite. Pallasite meteorites contain olivine, which is thought to come from the crust of a rocky planet orbiting between Mars and Jupiter. If not from the planet, it could belong to an asteroid with a rocky shell and a metal core. Pallasite can be distinguished by a meteorite iron substrate, embedded with silicate crystals, mainly olivine (a yellow to greenish-yellow crystal). The Pallasite meteorite is named after Simon Peter Pallas, a German naturalist. He was the first to describe Pallasite Krasnojarsk, a 700 kg meteorite, discovered in Russia in 1772. The origin of the Fukang meteorite, like other Pallasite meteorites, has not been scientifically explained so far. It is hypothesized that it originated from an asteroid with a melted and decomposed metal core and surrounding olivine mantle and formed with the solar system about 4.5 billion years ago. In addition to its rarity, the Fukang meteorite, like other Pallasites, is a very beautiful object. When shined through the olivine crystals, the light will make the meteorite glow brightly and spectacularly. Most expensive A cross section of the Fukang meteorite is on display at Arizona State University (USA). Because of this beauty, collectors have always wanted to own pieces of the Fukang Meteorite. The largest part of this meteorite, weighing nearly 420 kg, is currently in the possession of an anonymous collector or group of collectors. In 2008, the above Fukang meteorite was auctioned at Bonham’s, New York (USA) with a starting price of about 2 million USD. A curator and online auction organizer has placed the Fukang meteorite at number one in the “Top 10 Most Expensive Meteorites Ever Discovered on Earth”. However, no one participated in the auction for this treasure perhaps because the price was too high. Meanwhile, other small pieces of the remaining meteorite, have been purchased in auctions and distributed around the world. Particularly, the University of Arizona Meteorite Laboratory (USA) holds a total of 31 kg of Fukang meteorites. Their website describes the Fukang Pallasite as “the most breathtaking example of the splendor of the natural universe”. In February 2021, the famous auction house Christie’s said it had sold “part of the most beautiful extraterrestrial matter known”. That tiny piece of meteorite alone brought the seller $30,000, far exceeding the initial estimate of $3,500 – $4,500. What makes the Fukang meteorite so special? First of all, this is not an “ordinary meteorite”. Pallasite is an extremely rare heaven stone. This is because most Pallasite cannot survive falling into Earth’s atmosphere. It is estimated that less than 1% of rock falling from the sky is Pallasite. Therefore, the Fukang Meteorite is considered by scientists as one of the most important celestial rock discoveries of the 21st century. According to the Planetary Science Institute, based in Tucson, Arizona, USA, there have been about 1,100 observed and found meteorite falls in history. Meanwhile, the number found but not observed goes up to 40,000. The Fukang meteorite is among these. The institute estimates that about 500 meteorites collide with Earth every year, most of which burn up in the atmosphere, the rest fall into the ocean or in remote, desolate regions (According to Science 101).

Samples collected by Japan’s Hayabusa-2 probe. Pour mining money in space According to Florian Vidal (researcher at the French Institute of International Relations) and Professor of Physics José Halloy, the acceleration of ecological transition to combat climate change has led to a sharp increase in mineral demand. to service supposedly zero-carbon technologies as well as to maintain existing or newly built infrastructure. While projects to exploit mineral resources are being replicated on Earth, many “new fronts” are also being considered, such as mining in space. Typically, in 2016, the world’s media buzzed with the daring project of exploiting mineral resources on asteroids of the US companies Planetary Resources and Deep Space Industries. When Planetary Resources entered the space industry in the early 2010s, the company’s leaders were ambitious and promised to enter a new stage in the conquest of space with mining. on asteroids. Since 2012, the company’s project has attracted many private investors such as Larry Page and Éric Schmidt – the heads of Google Corporation, and filmmaker James Cameron. Excitement and enthusiasm for the field of space mining from the US has crossed the Atlantic Ocean and spread to the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg. In addition to adapting national legislation, Luxembourg’s diplomatic service has also been mobilized to facilitate the development of an area considered by the government to be strategic. By the summer of 2016, the State of Luxembourg, through the National Corporation for Credit and Investment (SNCI), spent 12 million euros to buy a 10% stake in the American company Planetary Resources. However, two years later, this partnership was broken. When the American company ran into financial difficulties, the Luxembourg government sold their shares at a symbolic price. However, Luxembourg’s participation in the space mineral exploration project has given them an international position to connect the fields of investment and invention and invention. Continuing the policy in this area, Luxembourg later continued to participate in NASA’s Artemis project to return humans to the moon. Japan, another member of the Artemis project, is also interested in the scientific study of the composition of asteroids, which is a step towards exploring potential mineral resources in space. In December 2020, Japan’s Hayabusa-2 space probe returned to Earth after a six-year mission past the asteroid Ryugu. The goal of this science mission was to prove Ryugu could have the primordial components of the solar system, and Hayabusa-2 accomplished the engineering feat of collecting 5.4 grams of matter from Ryugu at a cost 16.4 billion yen (126 million euros). Similarly, on October 20, 2020, Osiris-Rex (a NASA space probe) also performed a 6-second landing mission on asteroid Bennu to collect dust samples (regolith). Osiris-Rex is expected to return to Earth in 2023 with the collected dust sample. The cost of this mission is about $800 million and about $183.5 million for the Atlas V rocket. Perspectives under the sea To cope with the world’s growing mineral demand, undersea mining is often seen as a solution due to the vastness of this space. Among the countries interested in undersea mining is Norway. After 3 years of seabed exploration, making the Nordic country a leader in this new mining industry, in January 2021, the Norwegian Ministry of Oil and Energy announced the possibility of issuing a license from 2023. Mining permits are available to interested businesses, such as allowing Nordic Mining ASA’s Nordic Ocean Resources AS to exploit deep seabeds rich in copper, zinc, cobalt, gold and silver ores. According to many estimates, there is 6.9 million tons of copper on the Norwegian continental shelf. Japan also has similar plans, with the ability to start exploiting the seabed from 2026. In Canada, DeepGreen (based in Vancouver) in 2019 announced to raise an investment of 150 million. USD to begin exploration for mineral resources in a part of the Pacific Ocean. This is a sign of growing confidence in the industry’s future. However, mining depends primarily on the market price of the metal and the reduction in the cost of mining in the marine environment. The consequences of fishing for marine ecosystems are also of great concern. Scientists warn against switching too quickly from exploration to exploitation because humans still have little understanding of the vast undersea environment and life on the seabed. Controversy over regulations The development of mining activities in the new “fronts” mentioned above also poses the need for appropriate regulations to adjust. This is also what the leaders of the countries have seen. Typically, the International Seabed Authority (ISA) has spent many years drafting a Code for Future Undersea Mining – an indispensable tool for monitoring possible mining activities. deployed. Regulating is considered vital to seabed mining in deep waters such as the Clarion-Clipperton Zone (CCZ) which extends from the Hawaiian Islands to the Baja California peninsula and lies on the road. fault of the Pacific Ocean. This vast area is believed to have reserves of 247 million tons of nickel and 226 million tons of copper. However, many studies have shown that hidden in these spaces is a unique biodiversity and their density is reinforced by the presence of multi-needle nodules located at a depth of 4-5 km. Currently, the debate over regulations for these activities is still raging. While the International Seabed Authority recommends a gradual adjustment of regulations on a step-by-step basis when there are actors involved in seabed mining, it is also argued that such a gradual adjustment is slow. Slow, follow reality. Some argue that it will be difficult to modify the rules of conduct once mining has started. Experts say that although the exploitation of the ocean floor does not fully compensate for the activities taking place on land, it is a necessary additional source to meet future needs. But, as with space, deep-sea mining initiatives are posing dilemmas about extracting resources in increasingly remote regions. All opinions are that, whether on land or at sea, the conservation of ecological balance is a criterion to consider mining projects.

In what form could life on earth end in the end? Photo: Astronomy Some scientists point out that the earliest life on Earth was born about 4 billion years ago. At that time, the Earth was continuously bombarded by space meteors, but life continued strongly. Earth’s history has seen many catastrophes, and each one is like the end of the world. Supernova explosions, asteroid collisions, large-scale volcanic eruptions, sudden climate changes … these events have claimed countless lives. During a number of mass extinction events, most of the species at that time had been wiped out. In the end, however, life still goes on. There will always be new species on Earth, and a new cycle will begin again. Although human life may be unimaginably fragile, turning the entire Earth into a barren land is not so easy. Here are some events that have the potential to wip out all life on Earth (very low probability and not happening in the near future). The impact of asteroids When an asteroid hits Earth, it releases incredible energy. 66 million years ago, an asteroid the size of a city crashed into the Gulf of Mexico and led to the extinction of the dinosaurs. At that time, all other creatures on Earth were almost wiped out. Although human ancestors were not born at that time, it may be the most important event in human history. Without the asteroid impact, dinosaurs could always be the lord of Earth, and other mammals could only exist in their shadow. According to geological records assessment, the frequency of Earth being collided by large asteroids is about 100 million years. However, smaller asteroid effects occur more often. There is even evidence that some people have died from the effects of asteroids over the past few thousand years. In 1888, in Sulaymaniyah, now in Iraq, a meteor strike killed one person and injured another. This is the earliest recorded asteroid accident. But what is the probability that Earth will be hit by a large asteroid? A 2017 study published in Nature has shown that to cause this asteroid must be large enough. Only the largest asteroids in the solar system (like Pallas and Vesta) can do this. Richard Binzel, a professor of planetary science at MIT, said even though an asteroid might one day come and destroy us, the likelihood is very low. Oxygen depletion Fossil of trilobite, one of the earliest arthropods on Earth. Photo: Shutterstock The chances of the latter being slightly higher than the previous. First, let’s go back to long history. Nearly 2.5 billion years ago, Earth went through a period known as the “Great Oxidation Event” – creating oxygen on a global scale. The increase in cyanobacteria causes a huge increase in the amount of oxygen in the atmosphere. Without this event, no oxygen-breathing animals would exist and the biological world would not have been diverse, from low-order monocytes to higher multicellular flora and fauna, including humans. However, about 450 million years ago, one of the most serious extinction events on the planet – the Ordovic -Silur mass extinction occurred. It could be due to the sudden drop in oxygen levels at that time, which lasted for millions of years. But why is this happening? During the Ordovic period, all the continents on Earth were connected to form the supercontinent Gondwana. At that time, most life on Earth existed in the ocean, but plants began to appear on land. At the end of the Ordovic period, the Earth’s climate suddenly changed, causing this supercontinent to be covered with glaciers. The sudden drop in global temperature alone is enough to cause the disappearance of many species. Then, when global oxygen levels plummeted, life on Earth experienced a second wave of extinction. Scientists can find evidence of this drastic change in sediment samples on the seabed. Some researchers believe that glaciers at that time caused a fundamental change in ocean stratification, and that the temperature and oxygen concentration of each layer of seawater differ. However, the exact cause of this significant reduction in oxygen is still being debated. Whatever the reason, more than 80% of the species on Earth disappeared during the Ordovic mass extinction. Such events happened in the past, will history repeat in the future? In fact, a recent study published in Nature Communications has shown that climate change reduces oxygen levels in the ocean, which can cause the extinction of some marine life. Gamma-ray bursts Gamma-ray bursts can originate in binary star systems. Photo: University of Warwick Gamma-ray bursts occur when a giant star dies, explodes like a supernova, and collapses into a black hole. It spits out stream of rays at the speed of light in the universe. Any planet in the path of this stream would lose its atmosphere immediately and be burned. When the gamma rays in the explosion hit the blue planet’s atmosphere, they will cause oxygen and free nitrogen atoms to collide, and some will recombine into N2O compounds, the destroyer. ozone layer. N2O is long-lived in the atmosphere, and they continue to destroy ozone until it falls to the ground through rainfall. If there was a gamma-ray explosion in the Milky Way, it could potentially cause the extinction of a large number of species on Earth. If the gamma-ray burst was aimed in the direction of the Earth, even if it lasted only 10 seconds, it would destroy at least half of the Earth’s ozone layer. Scientific research in recent decades has shown that even a small fraction of the ozone layer is destroyed enough to weaken Earth’s “natural protective layer” and cause serious problems. And if the ozone layer is depleted to a certain extent, the Earth’s food chain will be severely damaged, leading to the extinction of a large number of species. Death of the Sun. As the sun continues to age, more and more energy is released, which could eventually wipe out the oxygen in Earth’s atmosphere. Photo: Nasa A study published in the journal Nature Geoscience in March this year showed that regardless of whether or not a gamma-ray explosion occurs, in about a billion years, most life on Earth will die from lack of oxygen. A team of scientists working with NASA believes that this oxygen-rich atmosphere will not last forever. In a billion years, the activity of the Sun will cause the Earth’s oxygen levels to drop back to the levels they were before the “Great Oxidation Event”. The team describes the last moment before the Earth’s inability to support life as follows: “We find that the deoxygenation of the future is an inevitable consequence of increased heat radiation from the Sun. The exact timing of this process will be governed by the redox flow that changes between the geological mantle and the ocean-atmosphere system and the Earth’s crust. ” Conclusions are made after modeling and running simulation based on the algorithm hundreds of thousands of times. The start time and duration of this process will depend on a variety of factors, and can be as short as 10,000 years. But researchers point out that for Earth, in the end, this fate is inevitable. Fortunately, humanity still has 1 billion years left to find another way out.

In a new study published in the journal Acta Astronautica, scientists said, in the future, a dangerous asteroid will plunge itself and collide with Earth. Relatively, an asteroid does not need to be too large to cause severe destruction. One of the simulations in this study is the asteroid 300 meters (1,000 feet) in diameter, the size of six Olympic swimming pools. This is not a large asteroid, but it would still destroy an area of ​​a large city with just the initial impact. An asteroid of this size is possible; as of October 2020, scientists have discovered 9,336 near-Earth object / asteroids (NEO / NEA) that are larger than 140 meters in diameter. Among them, scientists have classified 2,122 as potentially hazardous objects (PHO). So the risks here are not astronomically low – they are more likely to fall to Earth. Scientists say NASA has found that nuclear weapons are “10 to 100 times more effective” in moving asteroids out of a collision course with Earth than alternatives. Non-nuclear, thanks to the much higher energy of fission materials than conventional materials. This energy will apply the asteroid / asteroid an appropriate force to push the asteroids / meteors closer to Earth out of their original orbit. Detonating nuclear weapons to prevent an asteroid / asteroid plunge into Earth is considered optimal and feasible; Source: popularmechanics.com There are two ways to “treat” an asteroid / meteor – disruption or deflection it. In their research, the scientists ran computer simulations to see how it could dislodge the asteroid 300 meters from its flight path toward Earth. Shattering was Armageddon’s solution – hitting the asteroid directly to shatter it into much less damaging pieces. The other way – deflector, is a more “elegant” solution, according to the researchers. This only involves redirecting the entire asteroid so that it doesn’t hit Earth, eliminating the remaining variable left behind by a broken asteroid – debris. When detonating a nucleus near an asteroid, what happens is quite simple – detonating a nuclear device above an asteroid irradiates a certain surface area. Material near the surface melted almost immediately. This small amount of superheated matter then expands out of the asteroid as “blown”, creating a pressure wave in the remaining asteroid. A rocket-like emission pulse is transmitted and the asteroid’s initial velocity is altered, deflecting the asteroid. Nuclear detonation in simulations to change the intensity of its released neutron energy, the scientists found, up to 70% of the deflector action. So if we do this in the real world, the nuclear device will liquefy part of the asteroid’s surface, creating a backlash that alters the asteroid’s orbit. It must be a nuclear device that releases neutrons, not an X-ray emitter, to be as efficient as possible, the researchers said. And while we hope we never have to use those, it’s definitely better if we know in advance that we can.

People in the Eastern Hemisphere can observe Apophis without binoculars by 2029. Exclude from the risk Asteroid 99942 Apophis was discovered in 2004. Apophis was quickly identified as one of the most dangerous asteroids that can impact Earth. However, that impact rating changed as astronomers tracked Apophis and its orbit. Now, results from a new radar observation campaign combined with accurate orbital analysis have helped astronomers conclude that Apophis poses no risk of impacting our planet in the least. at most a century. About 340 meters across, Apophis is quickly known to be an asteroid that could pose a serious threat to Earth. At that time, astronomers predicted that this asteroid would come close to Earth by 2029. Thanks to additional observations of a near-Earth object (NEO), the risk of impact by 2029 has since been eliminated. The scientists then also ruled out the potential impact risk posed by another close approach in 2036. However, a small chance of impact by 2068 is thought to still exist. When Apophis moved away from Earth on March 5, astronomers had an opportunity to use the radar observations vigorously. As a result, it helps refine estimates of the orbits of asteroids around the Sun with extremely high accuracy. Thus, scientists can confidently eliminate all risks of collision by 2068 and much later. “An impact in 2068 is no longer in NASA,” said Davide Farnocchia of the Center for Near-Earth Objects Research (CNEOS) managed by NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory (JPL) in Southern California (USA). possibilities could happen again. Our calculations do not show any risk of impact for at least the next 100 years ”. Mr. Farnocchia mentioned the Sentry Risk Impact Table. Maintained by CNEOS, this table holds information about some asteroids whose orbits bring them so close to Earth that the impact cannot be ruled out. With recent findings, the Risk Impact Table no longer includes Apophis. Optical telescopes and ground radars help characterize every orbit of objects near Earth. As a result, scientists can improve long-term risk assessment. CNEOS calculated a high-precision orbit to support NASA’s Planetary Defense Coordination Office. Apophis is no longer a threat to Earth. Opportunity to “follow” Apophis Apophis is the size of three soccer fields, weighing 27 million tons. If it collided with Earth, it would cause an explosion that was equivalent to 880 million tons of TNT. This power could destroy a country of mid-size. Its impact with the Earth will be 65,000 times stronger than the atomic bomb that once fell on the city of Hiroshima, Japan. The impact hole it left could be 518m deep. To achieve new Apophis calculations, astronomers used 70 m radio antennas at the Deep Space Network’s Goldstone Deep Space Communications Complex near Barstow, California. As a result, they were able to accurately track Apophis’ movements. “Apophis used to be close to Earth, but it still has nearly 10.6 million miles (17 million km) to go. Despite this, we were able to obtain extremely accurate information about the distance of Apophis with an accuracy of about 150 m. This campaign helps us eliminate the impact of risk and a great scientific opportunity, ”said JPL scientist Marina Brozovic – who led the radar campaign. Goldstone also partnered with the 100-meter-long Green Bank Telescope in West Virginia to allow Apophis to be photographed. Goldstone transmits while Green Bank receives – experiment that doubles the strength of the received signal. Although the Apophis radar image appears in pixels, the image has a resolution of 38.75 m per pixel. This is a remarkable resolution, considering whether the asteroid is 17 million kilometers away, or about 44 times the Earth-Moon distance. As the radar team analyzes more data, they also hope to learn more about the asteroid’s shape. Previous radar observations have shown that Apophis has a “double layer”, or peanut-like appearance. This is a relatively common shape among asteroids near Earth that are greater than 660 feet (200 m) in diameter. Astronomers are also working to better understand Apophis’ rotation speed and the asteroid axis orbit. On April 13, 2029, the Apophis asteroids will cross less than 20 thousand miles (32 thousand kilometers) from the surface to closer to Earth than the distance of geotechnical asynchronous satellites. On that close 2029 approach, terrestrial observers in the Eastern hemisphere could witness Apophis without the aid of a telescope or binoculars. This is also an unprecedented opportunity for astronomers to get a close-up look at a monument in the Solar System. In particular, now, Apophis is just a scientific curiosity, instead of a danger to our planet. “When I first started learning about asteroids after college, Apophis was a malformed child among dangerous asteroids,” said Mr. Farnocchia. There is a certain sense of satisfaction to see it removed from the list of risks. We are looking forward to knowledge that we can explore in its up-close by 2029 ”.

Earth has been 4 billion years old since its birth in the universe. In the long history of the Earth, the stars, planets, satellites, asteroids in the universe along with the Earth have all had a fixed or uncertain mode of action. The formation of the Solar System, the Moon, asteroids crashing into the Earth, comets … prove that claim.

As the development of human civilization took shape on Earth, we began to explore the mysteries of the universe and our own planet.

Humans have discovered countless impact craters on Earth formed by the “falling stars” that once crashed into the Earth. These “falling stars” are then referred to as “meteorites / asteroids”, and the traces they leave on Earth are known as “meteorite craters” or impact craters.

It can be said that the crater is a symbol and evidence of the intersection of cosmic objects and the Earth. Not only that, some scientists who support the “exogenous” theory even believe that the water and energy necessary for life on Earth today are due to the impact of meteorites and comets.

Although this is not supported by strong evidence, the craters are still very valuable to scientists studying celestial celestial bodies. It is of great significance for the study of the formation and evolution of the Earth, the change in climate, the environment and animals in ancient times, the role of biological processes and mineralization.

Today, many meteorite holes have been discovered, through studying them, people have discovered many unknown secrets from ancient times as well as unique minerals created when Huge asteroid collided with the Earth.

THE LARGEST THIEN THIEN THE PLANET

According to the report of the Earth Impact Database released in 2016, worldwide there are about 190 impact craters detected so far. And the planet’s largest, oldest and most severely eroded asteroid crater is Vredefort Crater in South Africa.

The Vredefort asteroid crater is a crater that has existed on Earth for 2 billion years – it is the result of a meteor’s shock impact with the Earth at speeds right between 40,000 and 250,000 km / h. The diameter of the Vredefort Crater exceeds 300 km, making it the largest and oldest meteorite crater in the world (second after the Yarrabubba crater in Australia (2,229 billion years old), NASA updates for 2020.

The Vredefort meteorite hole in South Africa.

This huge meteorite hole is located in the Free State province, South Africa. Because the crater is so large, local people do not realize it is the “legacy” from the “meeting” of the Earth and meteorites. However, its enormous size has attracted scientists and geologists from all over the world.

In 2005, the United Nations decided to include the Vredefort impact pit on the list of World Heritage Sites in need of protection.

LOOK AT THE PAST – FORWARD TO THE FUTURE

Talking about the crater / meteorite hole, many people do not know the Chicxulub (Yucatán peninsula in Mexico), 150 km in diameter, occurred about 65 million years ago.

Many scientists believe that perhaps the extinction of a generation of dinosaurs on Earth at that time was related to the climate change due to the impact of this meteorite.

Likewise, as the world’s largest crater, the formation of the Vredefort Crater should have had a serious impact on Earth’s climate and biological evolution. We just haven’t figured out exactly what it has affected and how it affects it.

Before that, the United Nations formed a scientific research group, based in South Africa, and conducted scientific research in the Vredefort crater for seven years. In the end it was asserted that the meteorite’s destructive power plunged into Vredefort enough to change the climate and the structure of the African plate. Scientists are continuing to study the long-term effects from Vredefort’s earlier.

What is different from Vredefort’s other meteorite craters in the world is that it has grown from what should have been abandoned into a city complete with hundreds of thousands of inhabitants, and generations of people have been in This huge crater is like a peaceful paradise.

Scientists said, meteorites that plunged into the Earth may leave large “scars” for Earth on the bottom of the deep sea. Because the asteroid craters we’ve found so far are all above ground.

Due to the very large and deep seabed area, scientists currently do not have enough technology to conduct detailed investigations. Therefore, the impact crater on the sea floor remains an unsolved mystery in the scientific world. If you want to research, you must go through a long process of discovery by scientists, and this will also be the direction that scientists need to strive for in the future.

Articles using source: QualityandCertification, Yqqlm