If a 1-mile wide Meteor Hit, Could we...

So the devastation a 1-mile wide meteor would cause is catastrophic. We're talking about leveling the earth for 1,000's of miles.

Those that don't die will be sent into an age of darkness and global cooling, which would bring about the end of civilization.

So what I'm asking, if we can create weather, can we create massive machines capable of sucking those particles out of the air? Obviously it would be a time consuming process if even fathomable, but is it achievable? I need to ask the great minds here at ATS, not sure I can get a worthy response from my Facebook friends.

The area over oceans would be .... difficult.

a reply to: JoeGee

a reply to: JoeGee

We'd all be dead... so im pretty sure removing the crap from the air is a moot point

a reply to: Plotus

Maybe not. Higher humidity would mean better chance for rain, which would have a bigger effect than man-made efforts. If you could rain-seed, it'd help. Maybe use rockets to rain seed. Wouldn't be easy.

At least for a large-ish strike.

A mile wide would be basically devastating, though. Going to scour most of the earth at that size. Pretty good odds that little would make whatever infrastructure did survive pretty ineffective. Wouldn't fly in that sort of dust for the same reason planes don't fly through volcanic ash. And global supply line disruption would mean attempting to get food, electricity, etc to everyone left would be the number one chore for the immediate future.

a reply to: JoeGee

The dinosaurs farted a lot before they went too.

We brain fart instead now it's our turn.

Surviving (lol) a massive meteor strike would be more about feeding a face than building a massive machine.

No More Facebook Please. I hate swearing.

Now that I picture it after reading the above comments, I'm glad I come to ATS for my alternative questions. I mean, it wouldn't hurt to ask. Although a hypothetical, nothing is impossible and anything can be achieved

I can picture in an apocalyptic scenario like that, obviously our infrastructure would halt all together. No running water, no electricity, no transportation, nothing, anywhere. If such a feat were even fathomable, the feat would be impossible in the wake of that type of destruction. As some mentioned, to transport the essential materials, to even have or find the materials, would be the first major challenge.

However, I think the rain idea is a pretty solid idea so far. The whole idea would be for the rain particles to gather dust on the way down..It can be an operation conducted at a local level with whatever is left. There's one thing in this world we aren't short of. Missile silos.

originally posted by: nerbot
a reply to: JoeGee

The dinosaurs farted a lot before they went too.

We brain fart instead now it's our turn.

Surviving (lol) a massive meteor strike would be more about feeding a face than building a massive machine.

No More Facebook Please. I hate swearing.

Oh don't compare us to primitive dinosaurs. Last I checked, the Dinosaurs didn't have inter-planetary capabilities.

I guarantee you, if a meteor the size of the moon crashed into earth at 100,000 MPH, fragmenting Earth into millions of tiny pieces, the Human Species will continue to live on.

Adam and Eve Redux: The Movie *Coming to a planet near you*

Have you seen the world leaders and experts readiness and response to a flu level virus? Yeah, I'm thinking NAHHH in this scenario.

a reply to: JoeGee

can we create massive machines capable of sucking those particles out of the air?

won't ever happen. cause if such machines could be built then it goes to reason that before one would hit people would be calling for them to be adapted to suck out green house gasses. climate change folks ain't gonna let that happen. they'll lose all the money they plan on making.

besides the holes in the ozone will let it all out anyway, just like they do with green house gasses. lol

speaking of scrubbers, there are already people that have made plans for them.
Machines that suck CO₂ from the air might be cheaper than we thought

This Machine Just Started Sucking CO2 Out Of The Air To Save Us From Climate Change

The damage done depends on a multitude of factors.

originally posted by: Gothmog
The damage done depends on a multitude of factors.

Exactly... a land impact would be much different, than an oceanic impact.

A polar impact could cause minimal damage... a temperate zone impact would be catastrophic.

People could be killed, out in the open... or killed at home, hiding from a virus.

No impact scenario, would be without societal damage... the panic caused by the media; well... we are seeing now, just how that works...

originally posted by: madmac5150

originally posted by: Gothmog
The damage done depends on a multitude of factors.

Exactly... a land impact would be much different, than an oceanic impact.

A polar impact could cause minimal damage... a temperate zone impact would be catastrophic.

People could be killed, out in the open... or killed at home, hiding from a virus.

No impact scenario, would be without societal damage... the panic caused by the media; well... we are seeing now, just how that works...

And a person could be struck by a meteor (meteorite) in the wink of an eye , in home or out.

a reply to: madmac5150

And angle of approach and relative velocity, and, and, and... It'd be a bad time regardless.

originally posted by: JoeGee
So the devastation a 1-mile wide meteor would cause is catastrophic. We're talking about leveling the earth for 1,000's of miles.

Those that don't die will be sent into an age of darkness and global cooling, which would bring about the end of civilization.

So what I'm asking, if we can create weather, can we create massive machines capable of sucking those particles out of the air? Obviously it would be a time consuming process if even fathomable, but is it achievable? I need to ask the great minds here at ATS, not sure I can get a worthy response from my Facebook friends.

A mile wide? as many here have said so many factors involved. But as the cynic in me says we couldn't handle the most minor hit, much much less a major dense stone-based meteor. An ocean hit could set off massive tsunamis with it's trailing debris raining down and destroying large swaths of land and a land hit obviously obliterates within 50 miles of it's ground zero but the ensuing rain of burning debris will ignite the landmasses. We couldn't even get enough masks for a minor pandemic. All would most likely be dean from the after effects.

science.howstuffworks.com...

By the time you get up to a mile-wide asteroid, you are working in the 1 million megaton range. This asteroid has the energy that's 10 million times greater than the bomb that fell on Hiroshima. It's able to flatten everything for 100 to 200 miles out from ground zero. In other words, if a mile-wide asteroid were to directly hit New York City, the force of the impact probably would completely flatten every single thing from Washington D.C. to Boston, and would cause extensive damage perhaps 1,000 miles out -- that's as far away as Chicago. The amount of dust and debris thrown up into the atmosphere would block out the sun and cause most living things on the planet to perish. If an asteroid that big were to land in the ocean, it would cause massive tidal waves hundreds of feet high that would completely scrub the coastlines in the vicinity.

umm, yes that is what I took in College and we decided it was too hypothetical

originally posted by: JoeGee
Oh don't compare us to primitive dinosaurs. Last I checked, the Dinosaurs didn't have inter-planetary capabilities.

Nor do we.

We bounced on a moon and orbit this ball of dirt in expensive dustbins, robots do the rest.

a reply to: putnam6


Recent research indicates, that a mid-ocean impact would be a "best case scenario"...

A tremendous amount of impact energy would be directed upward... blasted out as steam. There would be tsunamis, as well as atmospheric shock waves... but, a deep ocean impact would effectively dampen that energy.

Not something, that I ever want to see...

if its made of Hydrogen!
burns up and Blows up befor it hits.

if its made of tungsten or some thing very hard!
it makes a big deep hole.

originally posted by: nerbot
Nor do we.

We bounced on a moon and orbit this ball of dirt in expensive dustbins, robots do the rest.

What about the Astronauts that are serving their tour on the ISS? They'll get quite the light show. They can land on the moon and call it their new home

Why let it hit ? we call Bruce build two super shuttles they go drill it planta nuk and lots of little rocks hit lolol
really a mile be like hitting the earth with a giant sledgehammer .
we could set off every nuk we have all in one spot and not produce 1 % of that energy .