Educational Program Focuses On Quarter-Mile Wide Asteroid,
Could Impact Earth In 2036
In December, 2004
scientists around the world raised the planet's level of anxiety by
announcing that a 1,400-foot-wide asteroid had a good chance of
slamming into our planet on Friday, April 13, 2029.
After calculating it had a 1 in 40 chance of impacting us, and
assigning it a four on the 1-to-10 Torino scale that is used to
gauge the threats posed by near-Earth asteroids and comets,
astronomers checked their image archives. When they found five
other sightings of the asteroid, the calculations dropped the
probability to zero.
However, last year more calculations and analysis of the
asteroid's orbit concluded that if the object passed through a
"keyhole" in 2019 in which all the necessary conditions coincided,
Apophis would indeed impact into the Pacific Ocean in 2036, causing
a tsunami of epic proportions and a worldwide disaster.
The Space Foundation, whose education programs are headed by Mr.
Iain Probert, have just released a new product called the "Apophis
Virtual Lab." The online program was announced just a couple of
weeks ago, and statistics on use are not yet available, but
reactions from the press, educators and space exploration experts
is promising.
Third grade students from Manitou Springs Elementary School in
Colorado were the first class nationwide to participate in this
interactive science program and use scientific methods in a virtual
lab to "save" the planet from destruction.
The release of the lab followed the premiere on October 3 of
NOVA scienceNow on PBS, which also addressed near-Earth asteroids,
including Apophis. Dr. Neil deGrasse Tyson is both the host of NOVA
scienceNow and featured in "Asteroid Challenge, Target: Earth."
Tyson is a Space Foundation board member, astrophysicist, and
director of the Hayden Planetarium in the Rose Center for Earth and
Space at the American Museum of Natural History in New York
City.
"Scientists tell us the asteroid Apophis could pose a real
threat to Earth," said Space Foundation Senior Vice President of
Education and Workforce Development Dr. Patricia Arnold. "'Asteroid
Challenge, Target: Earth' engages the next generation of
scientists, mathematicians, and engineers who will be responsible
for developing and implementing an effective solution to this real
life situation and problem. This virtual lab is an educational and
fun program that has relevance to students while improving their
science and math skills."
Using the virtual lab, students study asteroid composition and
orbital mechanics and conduct virtual experiments to determine the
trajectory of Apophis and how to divert it away from Earth's orbit,
choosing from among such options as exploding it, attaching a solar
sail to push it away, and using a gravitational tugboat method to
pull it out of harm's way.
Manitou Springs Elementary School third grade teacher and Space
Foundation Teacher Liaison Christi Marquardt led her class in the
nationwide debut of this interactive science program Wednesday,
October 4. To experience the virtual lab, click on the FMI link
below and select the Apophis Virtual Lab inside the "Mission"
box.
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