Visit Indian Travel Sites
Goa,
Kerala,
Tamil Nadu,
Andhra Pradesh,
Delhi,
Rajasthan,
Uttar Pradesh,
Himachal Pradesh,
Assam,
Sikkim,
Madhya Pradesh,
Jammu & Kashmir
Karnataka
|
India among top 10 countries likely to be worst hit by asteroid impact |
In a new study, scientists
have identified the countries that are most likely to be worst hit by the catastrophic
damage caused by asteroids. Research from the University of Southhampton have
identified for the first time those which will suffer catastrophic loss of life
or be so crippled it will be almost impossible for them to recover. NASA’s Wide
Field Infrared Survey Explorer has sampled 107 “potentially hazardous” asteroids
near Earth - 330ft wide or larger - to make estimates about how many are out there
- and the figure is a terrifying 47,000. The WISE survey now estimates there are
47,000 “potentially hazardous” asteroids. The PHAs (potentially hazardous asteroids)
have the closest orbits to Earth’s, coming within five million miles and they
are big enough to survive passing through Earth’s atmosphere and cause damage
on a regional, or greater, scale. The new results come from the asteroid-hunting
portion of the WISE mission, called NEOWISE. The project sampled 107 PHAs to make
predictions about the entire population as a whole. Findings indicate there are
roughly 4,700 PHAs, plus or minus 1,500, with diameters larger than 330 feet.
So far, an estimated 20 to 30 percent of these objects have been found. Scientists
have also drawn up a league table of the countries which will be worst affected
in the event of an asteroid strike. They have identified for the first time those
which will suffer catastrophic loss of life or be so crippled it will be almost
impossible for them to recover. The list has been compiled by researchers from
the University of Southampton using software called called NEOimpactor, short
for NASA’s “NEO” or Near Earth Object programme. Overall the top ten countries
most at risk are: China , Indonesia , India , Japan , the U.S, the Philippines
, Italy , the U.K, Brazil and Nigeria . “The NEOWISE analysis shows us we’ve made
a good start at finding those objects that truly represent an impact hazard to
Earth,” the Daily Mail quoted Lindley Johnson, program executive for the Near-Earth
Object Observation Program at NASA Headquarters in Washington, as saying. “But
we’ve many more to find, and it will take a concerted effort during the next couple
of decades to find all of them that could do serious damage or be a mission destination
in the future,” Johnson said. Countries likely to be worst affected by an asteroid
strike are: China Indonesia India Japan The U.S The Philippines Italy Britain
Brazil Nigeria.
|
|
|
|
|
|