‘God of chaos’ asteroid’s flyby of Earth in 2029 might set off tremors and landslides
A “god of chaos” asteroid set to do an ultra-close flyby of Earth in 2029 could trigger tremors and landslides, according to a new study.
The astral body, called Apophis, has been predicted to cruise within 20,000 miles of Earth on April 13, 2029. Measuring 340 metres in length, the peanut-shaped asteroid may not annihilate our planet, but it could easily destroy a city. Named after Apep, the ancient Egyptian god of chaos, Apophis was discovered in 2004 and has been tracked through space ever since.
Boffins initially believed it was on a collision course with our planet, but observations made in 2021 downgraded that risk.
Using more detailed analysis, scientists were able to determine Apophis’ path with greater accuracy, but it will still sail past Earth closer than some artificial satellites.
(Image: NASA)
However, that’s not to say that missing our planet means there won’t be an impact while it passes by. According to Ronald-Louis Ballouz, an asteroid scientist at the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory, said there could be landslides and tremors.
But don’t panic, as we won’t be the ones affected by this close encounter. Tiny meteoroids constantly bombard asteroid surfaces in a process known as space weathering, Ballouz explained in an email to Live Science.
Ballouz and a team of international scientists developed computational models of Apophis. They then simulated each model’s trajectory towards Earth, observing both major and minor physical alterations.
(Image: Getty Images)
The team found that two physical processes – initiated by Earth’s gravitational pull – are likely to reshape Apophis’ surface during its 2029 flyby. One is tremors that are expected to start an hour before Apophis gets closest to Earth and persist for a brief period afterwards.
Estimating the strength of these tremors is challenging, according to Ballouz. However, he noted: “Apophis’ gravity is about 250,000 times smaller than Earth’s. So, we think that events of much smaller magnitude could plausibly shake things up on its surface.”
This suggests the quakes might be powerful enough to launch boulders from Apophis’ surface. While some rocks may escape most will fall back onto Apophis, creating unique surface patterns that a passing spacecraft could detect.
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