‘Death Asteroid’ Apopis No chance of collision with Earth for 100 years

(Seoul = Yonhap News) Reporter Hong Joon-seok = Apophis symbolizing darkness, chaos, and death in Egyptian mythology.

The asteroid Apophis of the same name was first observed in 2004.

Apophis, measuring 340 meters in length, was the epitome of a dangerous asteroid that could approach Earth in 2029, 2036, and 2068 and collide with it.

However, Apophis has now disappeared from the list of asteroids of interest for the time being.

According to the BBC and the Daily Guardian on the 27th (local time), in a statement released the day before, NASA retraced its orbit through radar observations, revealing that Apophis is not at risk of colliding with Earth for the next 100 years.

Dr. Davide Farnokia, who studies near-Earth objects (NEO) at NASA, said the observations suggest that Apophis will pass 32,000 kilometers from Earth on April 13, 2029.

This is about a twelfth of the distance between the Earth and the moon (about 380,000 km), and, according to NASA, it can be observed with the naked eye from the Eastern Hemisphere.

“This observation has shown that there is no possibility of a collision (Apophis with Earth) for 100 years,” said Parnokia. “The 2068 collision theory is no longer in the realm of possibility.”

“Even when I started studying asteroids in college, Apophis was a typical model for dangerous asteroids,” he added. “The fact that Apophis was removed from the list of dangers (asteroids) creates satisfaction,” he added.

On the 5th, Apophis passed about 17 million kilometers from Earth.

Recently, President Moon Jae-in also mentioned Apophis.

President Moon said on the 25th, “We will launch a lunar orbiter next year, and by 2030 we will achieve the dream of landing on the moon using our projectiles.” I will do it.”