Doomsday 'Roids

[Starman]

Hey everybody,
With all the (disproved) idiotic rumors going around about that so-called doomsday asteroid, I figured I'd give hysteria its own thread.

So what do you think? Would they (the governments of the world) tell us? Wouldn't they? Why?

And hey, if it wasn't a world destroying event, would the Government try to contain the people already within the blast radius? Would you agree with the ethics of that if they did?

--Starman

[Bob Hegwood]

Just my opinion, Starman, but I think that they'd probably remain quiet until it
was impossible to ignore the upraised voices of the astronomical community...

Who really cares though... I think it would be a really cool way to go. You'd get
a spectacular view of an astronomical event before you left this world.

I can think of plenty of worse ways to go. By the way, I'll be laughing over
the results of your poll for a day or two. Thanks for the entertainment.

Take care, Bob

[Guest]

No; the exact opposite will be much more likely; we will get a month or so of complete panic, then the object will miss.

Assigning animpact risk assessment to very near earth object is absolutely necessary, of course; but saying something has a (say) one in twenty chance of hitting the Earth (which would be very high on the Palermo scale) is not a guarantee that it will hit.

Quite the opposite in fact.

We have never known about all the near-misses before-
we will now.[/b]

[eburacum45]

Logs in to edit message---

No; the exact opposite will be much more likely; we will get a month or so of complete panic, then the object will miss.

Assigning an impact risk assessment to very near earth object is absolutely necessary, of course; but saying something has a (say) one in twenty chance of hitting the Earth (which would be very high on the Palermo scale) is not a guarantee that it will hit.

Quite the opposite in fact.

We have never known about all the near-misses before-
we will now.

[ElPelado]

I would also prefer to die that way... its an interesting(and maybe painless) way to die...

[Evil Dr Ganymede]

The astronomers would be the ones telling people, not the governments. The governments couldn't put a lid on this no matter how hard they tried.


There's an idea. Maybe astronomers could tell people that an asteroid is coming, launch all the self-appointed "important people" into space, and then say "nah, false alarm. But at least we got rid of those politicians" . Meanwhile, the politicians' rocket has a slight guidance problem and ends up heading for the sun

[granthutchison]

I would also prefer to die that way... its an interesting(and maybe painless) way to die...

Well, if you're near or under the impact, certainly. But statistically you're more likely to be far from it, in which case you end up:
Drowning in a tsunami
Burning to death in a global wildfire
Freezing to death in the dark of a nuclear winter
Starving to death when the crops fail
Being shot while you protect your dwindling cache of canned goods
Dying in an epidemic in the absence of sanitation
Dying of a trivial disease in the absence of even basic medical care
Being killed and eaten by those more desperate than yourself

Grant

[Starman]

Ouch Grant, that's true. In every instance you're thinking, "What a way to die."

Thanks Bob, so will I

Evil Doctor , if I were a politician, I'd give John Kerry my seat.

El Pelado; it'd be fast, but I doubt painless. Imagine boiling alive before impact due to the major atmospheric friction. Of course that depends on speed too.

eburacum45, I agree. With all the 20 to 1 odds we have on 'roid collision detection, it wouldn't suprise me if hysteria would ensue after the astronomers let the cat out of the bag.

Frighting delema. Tell us there's a chance, or say nothing and hope for the best. It all depends how the media spins it. They alone could prevent mass hysteria.

If its something like 2 to 1 though, or even 6 to 1, we're in trouble.

--Starman

[t00fri]

I would also prefer to die that way... its an interesting(and maybe painless) way to die...

Well, if you're near or under the impact, certainly. But statistically you're more likely to be far from it, in which case you end up:
Drowning in a tsunami
Burning to death in a global wildfire
Freezing to death in the dark of a nuclear winter
Starving to death when the crops fail
Being shot while you protect your dwindling cache of canned goods
Dying in an epidemic in the absence of sanitation
Dying of a trivial disease in the absence of even basic medical care
Being killed and eaten by those more desperate than yourself

Grant

What a "positive minded" discussion ...

Statistically speaking, I think the chances are way higher that our /young/ friend ElPelado will soon catch leukemia, Hodgkin's disease or testicular cancer (with treatment starting too late...) than that he will be close or far away during a future hit of an asteroid...

Highest of all will be the chances for him to die in a traffic accident. Not to neglect the probability of developing a thrombosis followed by a subsequent terminal pulmonary embolus during his next flight from Argentina to the US (well that Australian girl was 29 when she left the Quantas plane and died in the Airport...)

Bye Fridger

[granthutchison]

Statistically speaking, I think the chances are way higher that our /young/ friend ElPelado will soon catch leukemia, Hodgkin's disease or testicular cancer (with treatment starting too late...) than that he will be close or far away during a future hit of an asteroid...

If "our young friend" lives where I calculate he does, he has some daily worries that probably seem more immediate than these options.

Grant

[tony873004]

If "our young friend" lives where I calculate he does, he has some daily worries that probably seem more immediate than these options.
Grant

lol. did his Iridium flares give him away?

[Bob Hegwood]

'roid collision detection

When I hear the terminology above, it makes me think of something entirely
separate from asteroid collisions. Hee, hee. Isn't this what happens when an
old geezer is about to sit down on a park bench?

Thanks, Bob

[Starman]

Part of the joke.