April 13, 2029 Apophis will pass at a minimum distance from the Earth. Scientists rule out the possibility of a collision of an asteroid and our planet during this period, but there is a possibility that due to the influence of gravity, its trajectory will change and a catastrophe may happen in 2036.
This version is widely used on the Internet. The trajectory of the flight of the celestial body and the possible places of fall have already been calculated. The asteroid can explode by crashing into the Asian part of Russia, Central America or the West Coast of Africa, or fall into the Pacific or Atlantic oceans. In any case, the consequences can be disastrous.
If Apophis falls into the ocean, we will face massive tsunamis that will wash away the coastal cities. If it falls to the ground, the explosion will cause enormous destruction in an area of thousands of square kilometers. But the main danger that a collision with an asteroid potentially poses is long-term global effects. Such as "asteroid winter" - an analogue of nuclear winter. This can happen if the explosion activates volcanic activity.
It is believed that even in 2029, the asteroid could cause significant damage, since it will pass in close proximity to the orbit of telecommunication and navigation artificial satellites. Disabling them threatens with communication disruption, global failure of navigation devices. This can cause chaos in all areas of life.
And, what is most sad, Apophis is just one of many asteroids that theoretically can cause, if not the Apocalypse, then the largest man-made and humanitarian catastrophe. And the trouble is that the appearance of a previously unknown "heavenly vagabond" is not so easy to calculate.
It turns out quite recently - at the end of June, an asteroid with a diameter of 57-130 meters flew dangerously close to the Earth (this is a record size for the last 100 years). And NASA spotted him too late. If its trajectory were different, for earthlings, everything could end extremely badly.
Currently, humanity has no means of defense against the cosmic threat. All projects are under development. There are two approaches to protecting the planet: changing the trajectory of asteroids and breaking them into small fragments.
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According to information that has no confirmation in official sources, it is possible to change the trajectory with a directed nuclear explosion, as well as with the help of an ion beam emanating from a spacecraft. The last option only seems fantastic. Already, many space satellites are powered by ion engines. Therefore, theoretically acting on the asteroid with an ion beam, you can change its trajectory. The same effect can be achieved by "torpedoing" an asteroid with a nuclear missile.
But all these methods are good for already identified asteroids. If a stranger "emerges" dangerously close to the Earth, the military space troops will have to shoot him down. And in this case, unpleasant consequences cannot be avoided, since the fragments will still fall to the Earth.
Asteroids pose a potential threat to humanity. Nobody denies this today. In the past, the Earth has already suffered from collisions with space giants, as a result of which the climate changed and various species of animals that inhabited the planet completely disappeared. It was the asteroid that caused the extinction of the dinosaurs, and I really don't want to share their sad fate.
