I am not a a nut, nor do i think the end of the world is coming. But I am curious what someone more educated on the matter might say.
-The Comet P/2006 T1 (Levy) is set to come within .0453 AU on approx Jan 7 2012 based on this orbit diagram (See Below) What is the likelihood that a comet passing that close to us will be capture by our orbit and/or hit the earth? This seems a little close for comfort to me based on the data I have found on Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 whose orbit was about .33 AU.
Being that I am not an astrophysicist, I can not read the rest of the data provided.
Again, I am not looking for an "end of the world" validation here, just an educated perspective on the matter.
http://ssd.jpl.nasa.gov/sbdb.cgi?ID=dK06…
-The Comet P/2006 T1 (Levy) is set to come within .0453 AU on approx Jan 7 2012 based on this orbit diagram (See Below) What is the likelihood that a comet passing that close to us will be capture by our orbit and/or hit the earth? This seems a little close for comfort to me based on the data I have found on Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 whose orbit was about .33 AU.
Being that I am not an astrophysicist, I can not read the rest of the data provided.
Again, I am not looking for an "end of the world" validation here, just an educated perspective on the matter.
http://ssd.jpl.nasa.gov/sbdb.cgi?ID=dK06…
-
We are not in trouble from any known comet; no comet is "coming for us."
Comet Levy (P/2006 T1) will pass 28,718,195 km. away from Earth on 2012 January 21. This is a huge distance away from us, and poses absolutely no threat of collision. It's one of several comets which will pass close to us later this year and early next year; none of them will approach near enough to be any threat.
This is a question of orbital mechanics (how things move in space), which has absolutely nothing to do with astrophysics (the origin and evolution of stars). Besides, David Levy is afriend of mine, and would never sic a comet on my planet (which also happens to be his planet).
Comet Levy (P/2006 T1) will pass 28,718,195 km. away from Earth on 2012 January 21. This is a huge distance away from us, and poses absolutely no threat of collision. It's one of several comets which will pass close to us later this year and early next year; none of them will approach near enough to be any threat.
This is a question of orbital mechanics (how things move in space), which has absolutely nothing to do with astrophysics (the origin and evolution of stars). Besides, David Levy is afriend of mine, and would never sic a comet on my planet (which also happens to be his planet).
-
0.0453 AU (4.2 million miles) is a reasonable miss distance. Also, those orbit diagrams are based on a very simplified set of equations. There is zero chance of it hitting, and capture into orbit around Earth is impossible at that distance because nothing can orbit Earth more than about 850,000 miles.
-
<>
You seem to imply that the people who make these calculations don't how gravity works. How can that be, if the comet's trajectory is based on the gravitational pull of the Sun, Earth and planets?
If they say it will pass at a minimum distance of 0.0453 AU then that's precisely what it will do.
You seem to imply that the people who make these calculations don't how gravity works. How can that be, if the comet's trajectory is based on the gravitational pull of the Sun, Earth and planets?
If they say it will pass at a minimum distance of 0.0453 AU then that's precisely what it will do.
-
remember the 1994 Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 collision with Jupiter? The size of the impact would have pulverized the earth....Jupiter keeps the debris a way from hitting the earth. Let's hope he will be there for us when P 2006 gets here, may God help us all...