T
TopazGirl
Guest
I know that asteroids can crash into earth, but I'm writing a fantasy and was wondering if a comet got close enough to Earth, would Earth's gravity pull it in?
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D
David D
Guest
Yes, it has happened recently. The Tunguska event.
The Tunguska Event, or Tunguska explosion, was a powerful explosion that occurred near the Podkamennaya Tunguska River in what is now Krasnoyarsk Krai of Russia, at around 7:02 A.M. local solar time on June 30, 1908.
Although the cause is the subject of some debate, the explosion was most likely to have been caused by the air burst of a large meteoroid or comet fragment at an altitude of 5–10 kilometres (3–6 miles) above Earth's surface. Different studies have yielded varying estimates for the object's size, with general agreement that it was a few tens of metres across.
The Tunguska Event, or Tunguska explosion, was a powerful explosion that occurred near the Podkamennaya Tunguska River in what is now Krasnoyarsk Krai of Russia, at around 7:02 A.M. local solar time on June 30, 1908.
Although the cause is the subject of some debate, the explosion was most likely to have been caused by the air burst of a large meteoroid or comet fragment at an altitude of 5–10 kilometres (3–6 miles) above Earth's surface. Different studies have yielded varying estimates for the object's size, with general agreement that it was a few tens of metres across.
C
cristasphoto
Guest
WHy Duh!!!!
And its Technically an Asteroid untill it reaches or hits earth.
THEN its a Comet...
And its Technically an Asteroid untill it reaches or hits earth.
THEN its a Comet...
M
Mercury 2010
Guest
sure.
comets tend to have a strong tie to the sun only. Their velocity is pretty high, and the other planets' gravity doesn't compare to the sun's but it is possible a comet could hit the earth, or another planet.
(I'm wrong. Comet Shoemaker-Levy9 hit Jupiter about 10 years ago. still jupiter is the x2 source of gravity in this solar system)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comet_Shoemaker-Levy_9
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tbhT6KbHvZ8&feature=related
(p.s. it is not called a comet because it hits the earth)
if discovered on earth, it would be called called a meteorite.
(a meteoroid is a small meteorite)
if we knew it was coming, when it hit us, we might actually refer to it still as a comet, since we knew it was a comet before it hit.
as it flies through the air its a meteor
random objects flying or orbiting in space, are referred to as an asteroid
I think the only thing that define a comet as a comet and not an asteroid is the fact it has a trail of ice blasting from behind it in the form of a tail.
the siberian impact---- interesting
asteroid or comet --- still under debate
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tunguska_event#Asteroid_or_comet.3F
comets tend to have a strong tie to the sun only. Their velocity is pretty high, and the other planets' gravity doesn't compare to the sun's but it is possible a comet could hit the earth, or another planet.
(I'm wrong. Comet Shoemaker-Levy9 hit Jupiter about 10 years ago. still jupiter is the x2 source of gravity in this solar system)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Comet_Shoemaker-Levy_9
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tbhT6KbHvZ8&feature=related
(p.s. it is not called a comet because it hits the earth)
if discovered on earth, it would be called called a meteorite.
(a meteoroid is a small meteorite)
if we knew it was coming, when it hit us, we might actually refer to it still as a comet, since we knew it was a comet before it hit.
as it flies through the air its a meteor
random objects flying or orbiting in space, are referred to as an asteroid
I think the only thing that define a comet as a comet and not an asteroid is the fact it has a trail of ice blasting from behind it in the form of a tail.
the siberian impact---- interesting
asteroid or comet --- still under debate
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tunguska_event#Asteroid_or_comet.3F