"Simulations have been done to show that when these Baptistina family members happen to get into a resonance with the planet Jupiter, in other words a resonance where the asteroid orbits seven times for every two orbits of Jupiter, when that special moment happens, the asteroids can get shot into the inner solar system, just like hitting a flipper on a pinball machine, some fraction of those asteroids are going to get into Earth-crossing orbits, which means they have a chance of hitting the Earth." -- Amy Mainzer, astronomer, March 4th 2008
Can someone explain this to me please?
Jupiter is a lot more massive than the asteroids are and hence an elastic gravitational collision will alter it's trajectory a lot less than that of an asteroid.
ReplyDeleteWhy the 7 to 2 ratio?
ReplyDeleteIt's just a rate thing, the asteroids orbit 3.5 times for every 1 orbit of Jupiter. It must be a highly elliptical orbit or something.
ReplyDelete...oh, I think I see, so you're going to dig up an ancient text dealing with that ratio?
ReplyDeleteOrbital Resonances occur all the time. The Baptistina family members are asteroids, one of which is suspected of being the the K-T Impactor.
ReplyDeleteThe gravitional influence of jupiter is huge, it reaches into the inner solar system and can cause trouble for smaller objects like asteriods. There are a number of impacts dated to 50-100 mya that are best explained by Baptistina family members getting pushed toward the sun by Jupiter.
Science aside, Amy Mainzer is hottest thing in astronomy.
ReplyDelete[Insert "heavenly body" pun here.]
Hmmmm, what if stonehenge was an ancient version of NASA's asteroid watch program. Maybe some of the ancients were concerned that Earth might be hit by the asteroids caused by the crazy tracks of Mars and Jupiter, whom they considered to be gods? If so, then perhaps the "Messengers of the Gods" were actually Near-Earth asteroids and meteor showers and comets, or in some marginal sense they were "alien visitors among the constellations".
ReplyDeleteJeffery, totally, she's got some desireable genes....smart and good looking :)
ReplyDeleteOh god, it would be very hard for such a pretty and nice lady to be well known and valued scientist. I believe that by all that effort - studies and work, she would like to be more trustful professional than "Miss astronomer". But be frank during watching the Universe series I also said who is that who is that, immediately searched for her name
ReplyDeleteand found also blog at History.com "Amy Mainzer will you be my girlfriend?" Then I said myself not to be same pig and try to source some more valued question... ;-)
Hmm well but I'm amateur in "stars field" and only what I could share with her opinion that yes I feel our earth/galaxy collision earlier than later... (while I'm pesimist)
May bee, if I could ask, I would like to know what Amy believe, are we (human) from mother Earth, also part of evaluation (since begining), or we came - by some asteroid crash - from 'out of there'?! (-I believe that)
;-)
Kristian
She's married obviously.
ReplyDeleteIf she wasn't those would be fighting words haha.