On social media, many viewers were stunned after a simulation revealed the catastrophic impact of a potential asteroid collision with Earth.
How a known asteroid impact could cause unimaginable destruction on earth.
A new simulation video reveals the terrifying impact that real known asteroids would have if they struck Earth.
Created by MetaBallStudios, the video takes viewers through a shocking sequence of asteroid impacts, each demonstrating a unique level of devastation.
Asteroids hitting major cities: from New York to Rome
The simulation begins with a small asteroid measuring 4 meters across, striking New York City.
Despite its size, the impact is severe, destroying the Statue of Liberty and leaving a crater over a kilometer wide. The devastation escalates with each larger asteroid, as viewers see the entire city leveled in an instant.
Larger asteroids create even more destruction.
An asteroid impacting Rome, for instance, is shown to generate a massive crater nearly 840 kilometers wide, wiping out not only Rome but much of Europe in the process.
This simulated scenario underscores the catastrophic potential of asteroid impacts on densely populated areas.
The internet reacts to the simulation
The footage, uploaded to YouTube and shared widely on social media, has sparked intense reactions.
Reddit users expressed a mixture of fear and fascination.
One person said: I love me a good old cataclysm….something very satisfying about this….come Lord Vader fire up the Death Star
A second wrote: I’ll be outside on a Deck Chair with a beer, Ray-ban’s on waiting for the fire show to begin
While a third commented: Just imagine what would happen with real “unknown” asteroids.
Someone else said: The earth is flat. The chances of anything bumping into it are slim to none and when it does it would just slide off
Real-world asteroid concerns: Asteroid 2007 FT3
While these simulated impacts are hypothetical, NASA is keeping a close eye on real asteroids that may pose a risk to Earth.
Asteroid 2007 FT3, for instance, has been identified as a potential threat after it briefly disappeared from detection in 2007.
Although it’s not expected to cause a global extinction event, it could still release an estimated 2.6 billion tons of TNT in energy, comparable to around 48 Tsar Bombas—the largest nuclear bomb ever detonated
Although even this massive asteroid would not match the explosive potential of all nuclear weapons combined, the damage would still be significant.
Experts hope that by raising awareness of asteroid threats, humanity can invest in potential defense technologies that might one day divert such objects away from Earth.
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