But, of course, there could be more coming.

Yes, I'm referring to 2014 UN271, which has recently been in the news. If
it weren't for the strong possibility that carbon dioxide may have already
given it a cometary tail when it was first sighted, it could have been as much
as 60 miles in diameter.

It is on its way towards us, but it won't quite get as close as the orbit of
Saturn.

Still, though, given that it isn't very often something big from that far out
comes towards the inner solar system... could we have just lucked out?

Is this the object that could have been another asteroid hitting the Earth
and doing as much damage as the one that killed the dinosaurs?

And, of course, for there to be more than a one-in-a-million chance of
something hitting the Earth, when objects start coming like that, perhaps
quite a few come at once.

Back when it was noted that extinction events seemed to have a 26 million
year periodicity (a new study has given a slightly longer value for that) ,
including the one that killed the dinosaurs 65 million years ago...

I wondered if, perhaps, the odd numbered events just had bad luck, and the
periodicity could really be 13 million years. Enough to make the extinction
of the dinosaurs five periods ago.

2014 UN271 inclines me again to consider this possibility.

John Savard

On Sunday, June 27, 2021 at 6:52:07 PM UTC-7, Quadibloc wrote:
> But, of course, there could be more coming.
>
> Yes, I'm referring to 2014 UN271, which has recently been in the news. If
> it weren't for the strong possibility that carbon dioxide may have already
> given it a cometary tail when it was first sighted, it could have been as much
> as 60 miles in diameter.
>
> It is on its way towards us, but it won't quite get as close as the orbit of
> Saturn.
>
> Still, though, given that it isn't very often something big from that far out
> comes towards the inner solar system... could we have just lucked out?
>
> Is this the object that could have been another asteroid hitting the Earth
> and doing as much damage as the one that killed the dinosaurs?
>
> And, of course, for there to be more than a one-in-a-million chance of
> something hitting the Earth, when objects start coming like that, perhaps
> quite a few come at once.
>
> Back when it was noted that extinction events seemed to have a 26 million
> year periodicity (a new study has given a slightly longer value for that) ,
> including the one that killed the dinosaurs 65 million years ago...
>
> I wondered if, perhaps, the odd numbered events just had bad luck, and the
> periodicity could really be 13 million years. Enough to make the extinction
> of the dinosaurs five periods ago.
>
> 2014 UN271 inclines me again to consider this possibility.

Always keep in mind that Chicken Little only needs to be correct once!

:>)

On Sunday, June 27, 2021 at 6:52:07 PM UTC-7, Quadibloc wrote:
> But, of course, there could be more coming.
>
> Yes, I'm referring to 2014 UN271, which has recently been in the news. If
> it weren't for the strong possibility that carbon dioxide may have already
> given it a cometary tail when it was first sighted, it could have been as much
> as 60 miles in diameter.
>
> It is on its way towards us, but it won't quite get as close as the orbit of
> Saturn.
>
> Still, though, given that it isn't very often something big from that far out
> comes towards the inner solar system... could we have just lucked out?
>
> Is this the object that could have been another asteroid hitting the Earth
> and doing as much damage as the one that killed the dinosaurs?
>
> And, of course, for there to be more than a one-in-a-million chance of
> something hitting the Earth, when objects start coming like that, perhaps
> quite a few come at once.
>
> Back when it was noted that extinction events seemed to have a 26 million
> year periodicity (a new study has given a slightly longer value for that) ,
> including the one that killed the dinosaurs 65 million years ago...
>
> I wondered if, perhaps, the odd numbered events just had bad luck, and the
> periodicity could really be 13 million years. Enough to make the extinction
> of the dinosaurs five periods ago.
>
> 2014 UN271 inclines me again to consider this possibility.
>
> John Savard

Now days soon, you can all ways move to Mars and live a little longer, if you like?
Assuming you have enough money to pay for the trip, meaning you are rich!
As Jesus said - Meek shall inherit the Earth.

On Sunday, June 27, 2021 at 9:12:45 PM UTC-6, palsing wrote:

> Always keep in mind that Chicken Little only needs to be correct once!

Oh, yes.

And with just a little bad luck - if Saturn was there when it came to just outside
its orbit, the gravitational encounter could have changed its perhelion - and then,
after a few orbits, it could have been changed again.

So the body we're seeing, even though it won't make it to Earth's orbit, is indeed
a potential dinosaur-killer, so it appears we are not living in a time safe from
the risk of the impact of a large body.

John Savard

On Mon, 28 Jun 2021 10:35:11 -0700 (PDT), Quadibloc
<jsavard@ecn.ab.ca> wrote:

>On Sunday, June 27, 2021 at 9:12:45 PM UTC-6, palsing wrote:
>
>> Always keep in mind that Chicken Little only needs to be correct once!
>
>Oh, yes.
>
>And with just a little bad luck - if Saturn was there when it came to just outside
>its orbit, the gravitational encounter could have changed its perhelion - and then,
>after a few orbits, it could have been changed again.
>
>So the body we're seeing, even though it won't make it to Earth's orbit, is indeed
>a potential dinosaur-killer, so it appears we are not living in a time safe from
>the risk of the impact of a large body.

We never have lived in such a time, and never will. Indeed, the
individual risk posed by a dinosaur killer class impact is similar to
that posed by taking a commercial flight!

On Sunday, 27 June 2021 at 21:52:07 UTC-4, Quadibloc wrote:
> But, of course, there could be more coming.
>
> Yes, I'm referring to 2014 UN271, which has recently been in the news. If
> it weren't for the strong possibility that carbon dioxide may have already
> given it a cometary tail when it was first sighted, it could have been as much
> as 60 miles in diameter.
>
> It is on its way towards us, but it won't quite get as close as the orbit of
> Saturn.
>
> Still, though, given that it isn't very often something big from that far out
> comes towards the inner solar system... could we have just lucked out?
>
> Is this the object that could have been another asteroid hitting the Earth
> and doing as much damage as the one that killed the dinosaurs?
>
> And, of course, for there to be more than a one-in-a-million chance of
> something hitting the Earth, when objects start coming like that, perhaps
> quite a few come at once.
>
> Back when it was noted that extinction events seemed to have a 26 million
> year periodicity (a new study has given a slightly longer value for that) ,
> including the one that killed the dinosaurs 65 million years ago...
>
> I wondered if, perhaps, the odd numbered events just had bad luck, and the
> periodicity could really be 13 million years. Enough to make the extinction
> of the dinosaurs five periods ago.
>
> 2014 UN271 inclines me again to consider this possibility.
>
> John Savard

It's not going to, but it would be nice if it hit the moon. it wouldn't do much to the moon or its orbit, but would be a good show.

On Monday, June 28, 2021 at 5:42:39 PM UTC-7, RichA wrote:
> On Sunday, 27 June 2021 at 21:52:07 UTC-4, Quadibloc wrote:
> > But, of course, there could be more coming.
> >
> > Yes, I'm referring to 2014 UN271, which has recently been in the news. If
> > it weren't for the strong possibility that carbon dioxide may have already
> > given it a cometary tail when it was first sighted, it could have been as much
> > as 60 miles in diameter.
> >
> > It is on its way towards us, but it won't quite get as close as the orbit of
> > Saturn.
> >
> > Still, though, given that it isn't very often something big from that far out
> > comes towards the inner solar system... could we have just lucked out?
> >
> > Is this the object that could have been another asteroid hitting the Earth
> > and doing as much damage as the one that killed the dinosaurs?
> >
> > And, of course, for there to be more than a one-in-a-million chance of
> > something hitting the Earth, when objects start coming like that, perhaps
> > quite a few come at once.
> >
> > Back when it was noted that extinction events seemed to have a 26 million
> > year periodicity (a new study has given a slightly longer value for that) ,
> > including the one that killed the dinosaurs 65 million years ago...
> >
> > I wondered if, perhaps, the odd numbered events just had bad luck, and the
> > periodicity could really be 13 million years. Enough to make the extinction
> > of the dinosaurs five periods ago.
> >
> > 2014 UN271 inclines me again to consider this possibility.
> >
> > John Savard

> It's not going to, but it would be nice if it hit the moon. it wouldn't do much to the moon or its orbit, but would be a good show.

So, according to your calculations, just how big an object needs to hit the moon in order to alter its orbit? Inquiring minds want to know...