5 upvotes, 2 direct replies (showing 2)
View submission: What was this object
Serious question. Let's imagine for a second it *was* a comet. If one of this apparanent size, speed and magnitude was in the sky just how much shit would we be in? Would it inevitably get pulled into Earth gravity well and collide or could it skim past us? Would it be going even faster across the sky at this close? Or could it be this big and bright and still far enough away to move slowly across the sky like a real comet?
Comment by thescrounger at 03/07/2024 at 12:05 UTC
9 upvotes, 0 direct replies
I believe this cannot be answered as asked. Comets vary in magnitude from each other and individually depending on their distance from the sun. So we couldn't judge its distance from Earth based on the magnitude or its apparent speed in the sky. Also whether it hits Earth would depend also on its trajectory, not just the speed and distance.
However, we can infer that no comet observed in recorded history has moved this "fast" across the sky. The closest approach was in 1770 and that was more than a million miles away. It was observed moving across the sky over several days, not minutes.
Comment by Quirky_Box4371 at 03/07/2024 at 11:34 UTC
1 upvotes, 1 direct replies
Comets do not travel nearly as fast as this, they are also quite massive when shedding material. I would surmise an average comet traveling at that speed and distance would not only blow past the Earth without a care, it would exit the solar system entirely.