Jupiter is flinging asteroids at Earth 'like a sniper', top scientist warns

Fox News ^ | Thursday, January 9, 2020 | Charlotte Edwards | The Sun

[minnesota_bound]

#54 A big stop sign in orbit would do the trick.

[Bommer]

I though snipers hit their targets?

[vikingd00d]

Jupiter needs more range time, apparently.

[Afterguard]

Meh... St. Greta says we’ve only got 11 years and a couple of months before the Earth is kaput anyway. Why sweat this too?

[polymuser]

“:^) Not until post 7? This place has gone way downhill.”

I know, right?

Who flung poo?

[be-baw]

Simulations are also used to prove humans’ contribution to climate change.

[Mouton]

Glad they absorbed that Shoemaker one.

[yefragetuwrabrumuy]

I wonder if Jupiter could be persuaded to pitch both giant asteroids and comets towards Mars? Both to substantially increase its mass, and then cover some of its surface with water.

[EvilCapitalist]

That wasn’t St. Greta. That was AOC.

[Vaquero]

Never mentioned gas giant #2. But of course anything that big is going to stir the pot. And a resonance of Saturn and Jupiter caused some incredible changes in the early solar system. the two giants together might have even tossed the proposed 9th planet (planet X) into a distant orbit that we can’t see. But it’s seems to be effecting the solar system now and scientists are currently searching for it.

So much we DON’T know.

[jmacusa]

Indeed. Jupiter is our cosmic shortstop.

[OrioleFan]

President Trump needs to consult with Adam Schiff and Nancy Pelosi before he uses the Space Force... /sarc

[rawcatslyentist]

Okay so One chance at a hit vs almost infinite misses.

He may be a scientist but only a common core math person would even for a second entertain that whopper!~

[SunkenCiv]

You simply have no idea what you’re talking about, but thanks for coming by to a science and astronomy topic, considering it is obvious you have no interest or experience in either.

[dila813]

This is the result of carbon emissions by humans perturbing the orbits of the solar system.

[SunkenCiv]

If by that remark you mean, the Earth has never been hit by an asteroid, I suggest you crack a book sometime.

[SunkenCiv]

I wholeheartedly agree. And in choice 2, once an object enters the inner Solar System due to Jupiter's having altered its trajectory, it will spend the rest of its existence orbiting the Sun, unless it falls into the Sun's gravity well. IOW, this could be the origin for some of the Earth-crossing asteroids.

[reg45]

The effect of the giant asteroids hitting Mars would be devastating to any chance of colonization by humans for millions of years.

[MadMax, the Grinning Reaper]

Nuke it from space just to be sure.

[MadMax, the Grinning Reaper]

78. Well, there goes Trump’s plan for an upscale Trump Mars Hotel and Galactic Casino.