An asteroid, about 50 meters in diameter, is on a trajectory that could crash into Earth on Valentine’s Day in the year 2046. Astronomers estimate that the celestial object, dubbed “2023 Dw”, would have a chance of 1,584 landing on our planet. What would be the consequences of this impact?
“This is what is called a ‘city killer’, ie a city killer“explains Marie-Ange Sanguy, editor-in-chief of the magazine Space and exploration. She specifies: “It is basically a city, a region that will be destroyed by its impact. When we detect it and it arrives, we have time to build backup systems, among other things. evacuation of the entire area where it is located should arrive» .
A possibility that is made less certain by the high probability of impact in a sea or ocean. Recent examples of asteroid impacts, albeit smaller ones, give us an idea of the consequences.
“The meteorite arrived in Russia, in Chelyabinsk, did a lot of damage. For example, it has shattered windows and depending on where it falls, it can kill people. But it will not cause massive destruction, “explains Marie-Ange Sanguy. She concludes:” The smaller they are, the less they will cause massive destruction, and the more they will tend to burn up in the Earth’s atmosphere before arriving. To the ground .”