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Superflares Could Pose Serious Risk to Mars Mission

May 24, 2016 By Chen Lai Leave a Comment

Solar flames usually cause geomagnetic interference.

NASA scientists have studied the effects of solar flares and Superflares. It seems that, while our planet is properly shielded, such an event posing a danger only to our communication systems, not our lives, the rest of the solar system is not that lucky.

In 1989 a solar eruption caused a 9-hour blackout in Quebec, leaving over 6 million people in the dark. However, that was only a small example of what the whims of the Sun could do to our technology.

Back in 1859 a Superflare, also known as the Carrington Event, caused panic among the inhabitants of our planet. Even though the level of technological development wasn’t incredible, communications were affected, the sky lit, and the people believed that the Sun was going to explode.

It seems that the Carrington Event is not the only incident involving a Superflare. According to the calculations of NASA astronomers, in 775 a giant solar flare reached our planet, causing a very potent geomagnetic storm.

Unfortunately, we have no means of checking the impact that the flare had on the human population that roamed the Earth at the time.

However, a geomagnetic storm is far from posing actual dangers to our lives. Luckily, we have a thick atmosphere that protects us from the other effects of such a solar occurrence.

Superflares are not only loaded with magnetic energy, but they also contain high, very lethal doses of cosmic and solar radiation. In the event in which the Mars mission will be en route, or even on the surface of the Red Planet when one occurs, the crew will die in a matter of minutes due to radiation poisoning.

NASA researchers are currently working on ways to keep the crew safe from such an unpredictable incident by testing out all kinds of emergency equipment.

Solar flares and Superflares are unpredictable. Their occurrence seems to be random, mathematicians and astronomers alike trying and failing to find a pattern of the explosions.

The good news is that in the case in which such a flare is emitted by the Sun while the Mars mission is happening, NASA found a way to detect them and warn the crew before the radiation reaches them.

Let’s hope that the Sun will be on its best behavior by 2030 when the first Mars Mission is scheduled to take place.

Image source: Wikipedia

What Will Happen to Humans When Earth Becomes Uninhabitable?

May 17, 2016 By Brian Galloway Leave a Comment

In the case in which Earth becomes uninhabitable, humankind will seek refuge on Jupiter’s moons.

Life on our planet depends on the intensity of the Sun. However, astronomers have studied numerous stars throughout all of their life stages, and it seems that in a couple billion years, things will get pretty heated in our solar system. When the temperatures will rise the oceans will boil, and all life will disappear. Or will it? What do scientists think will happen to humans when Earth becomes uninhabitable?

According to Lisa Kaltenegger and Ramses Ramirez, humankind will be able to survive on more distant grounds. Mars isn’t the only possible new home for humans. Jupiter’s moons Enceladus and Europa are both perfect for hosting life in the event in which the Sun starts shining brighter.

Scientists have discovered that Enceladus and Europa both have warm, dense cores that will generate just the right amount of gravity. Furthermore, Enceladus even has massive frozen water deposits that, in the case of a warm up, will turn into an ocean that will take over the entire satellite. Just imagine Bora Bora, only on the whole moon.

The most exciting part of this scenario is the fact that the heat wave could bring back to life all of the organisms that are currently under the ice on Enceladus and all other planets that have not seen a warm ray of sun in millions of years.

However, if Earth becomes uninhabitable in a couple billions of years, humans may not be limited just to the planets and satellites within our solar system. NASA is already planning to send a manned mission to Mars in 14 years; Stephen Hawking is working on an array of minuscule probes that will explore outer systems, searching for additional signs of life.

It’s not impossible for them to find uninhabited Earth-like planets where humankind will be able to move once our Sun starts to turn our world into an uninhabitable wasteland.

Currently, astronomers have discovered 23 red giant stars that are only 100 light-years away from our solar systems. In a couple of billions of years, researchers will certainly find thousands upon thousands of systems capable of harboring human life.

Moreover, at the rate in which technology is advancing, humans might just build their own planets by the time Earth becomes uninhabitable.

Image source: Pixabay

Seeds Saved Birds from the Dinosaur Extinction

April 22, 2016 By Deborah Nielsen Leave a Comment

The fossils of several feathered non-avian Maniraptoran dinosaurs

While the reason behind the extinction of the dinosaurs is a generally known fact, it was only in a recent study that we found out that the giant reptiles that ruled out planet in the past had been on the decline for some fifty million years before they went extinct.

This had to do with more than a single factor, as volcanic eruptions, the separation of the continents, and on-going climate change caused by billions of tons of carbon dioxide being pumped into the atmosphere all contributed to the dinosaurs’ slow but certain decline. But that’s not to say that had the asteroid not hit the dinosaurs would have still been extinct.

Oh no, they would likely have still been around today, only in a much different form than the one to which we are used. This is even proven by the fact that there are still members of the theropod class of dinosaurs still alive today. And yes, I am talking about birds.

But seeing as they evolved from dinosaurs that were alive sixty-six million years ago, how exactly did they manage to evolve? Well, according to a recent study from the Universities of Toronto and Alberta, seeds saved birds from the dinosaur extinction. Well, not birds as we know them today, but maniraptoran dinosaurs, a clave of small carnivorous theropods that largely resembled today’s birds.

So if the modern day birds’ ancestors were carnivorous and they were alive when the asteroid hit, how is it that we still have birds, and what did seeds have to do with anything? Well, as the climate was changing, as the dinosaurs were dying off, and as the sunlight was covered by a cloud of ash, food was beginning to be very scarce.

While meat was getting rarer and rarer, and plants couldn’t really photosynthesize with no sunlight, one of the very few sources of food remaining were seeds. Buried in the ground and viable for consumption for up to five decades, the dinosaurs that wanted to survive had to adapt to their new conditions.

Of course, larger dinosaurs couldn’t really survive on just seeds, so the smaller, carnivorous, toothed maniraptorans had to combine their meaty diet with plenty of seeds. Over time, they evolved so that they lost their teeth and started eating mostly seeds and other creatures smaller than them, eventually reaching the form of today’s birds.

One of the biggest problems with identifying that particular class of dinosaurs was that their bones were very fragile. So, it’s a very common occurrence for the only fossils encountered by scientists to be the teeth, as they tended to be stronger than the regular bones. This made it quite hard for the team to actually find out when maniraptorans evolved into birds, even if they tried to reverse engineer the process by following the birds’ ancestors instead of the dinosaurs’ descendants.

Image source: Wikimedia

Sea Levels Are Rising Faster Than Any Time In Past 2800 Years

February 26, 2016 By Jason Leathers Leave a Comment

Sea levels will rise between 22 to 52 inches this century if global warming is not curbed.

A study just published in the Proceedings of The National Academy of Sciences reveals that the Earth’s sea levels are rising faster than any time in past 2800 years. The research is the first global statistical analysis of several individual studies of the history of global sea level going back more than 2,500 years.

Rise in sea level is but one of the repercussions of global warming. First, shrinking land ice, such as mountain glaciers and polar ice sheets, is releasing water into the oceans. Second, as ocean temperatures rise, the warmer water expands. Trapped within a basin bounded by the continents, the water has nowhere to go but up.

In some parts of the world, especially low-lying river deltas, local land is sinking (known as subsidence), making sea levels that much higher. The consequences of sea level rise include threats to coastal communities and saltwater intrusion (saltwater intrudes into groundwater drinking supplies, contaminates irrigation supplies, or overruns agricultural fields).

However, our planet’s ocean levels have changed over time even before global warming became an alarming situation, but this fluctuation has been gradual such that the sea rose by only 3 inches in 27 centuries. This means that the increase would be around 1 inch per century.

Moreover, the figure spiralled up to 5.5 inches in the aftermath of the Industrial Revolution. Thereafter, the rise has been happening at unprecedentedly high rates. Given the current situations, the rise would be equivalent to a foot every 100 years. According to estimates, the sea will have risen by 52 inches by 2100.

The new findings show that the increase in the 20th century has been the fastest in 3,000 years. The study focused on historical records, modern testing, and statistics to evaluate the fluctuating sea levels throughout the years.

The lead author of this paper, Bob Kopp from Rutgers University, explains that the 20th century having known great use of fossil fuel witnessed a high rate of temperature increase which caused the sea level rise.

Kopp and his team analysed 24 coastlines, marshes, and archipelagos across the globe. They also examined 66 tide-gauge records that went as far back as 1700.

They found that sea levels were even decreasing before the Industrial revolution – that trend might have persisted if not for the human activities that ensued from then on. According to their results, sea levels will rise between 22 to 52 inches this century if global warming is not curbed; otherwise, the ocean level will only rise to a lesser extent.

I think we can definitely be confident that sea-level rise is going to continue to accelerate if there’s further warming, which inevitably there will be.

declared Stefan Rahmstorf of Germany’s Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research.

There is no evidence yet of large numbers of coastal homes and developments disappearing into the surge due to the rising sea level.

However, there have been some reports of related flooding in low-lying areas, causing many nuisances and problems, such as standing salt water disrupting traffic in neighborhoods, dying lawns, polluted fresh water supplies and clogged drains.

Furthermore, another paper from Climate Central, argues that around 75% of tidal floods on the East Coast are the result of rising sea levels, and human activities. In a statement to The Times, its lead author, Dr. Benjamin H. Strauss, states that the problem is neither the tide nor the wind, but us.

Image Source: crainsnewyork.com.

The First Animal On Earth Might Be The Sea Sponge

February 26, 2016 By Deborah Nielsen Leave a Comment

The first animal to appear on Earth was very likely the simple sea sponge.

New study shows that the first animal on earth might be the sea sponge. As strange and unexpected as it may sound, according to a recent genetic analysis by researchers at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, the first animal to appear on Earth was very likely the simple sea sponge.

Although they may look plant-like, sponges are the simplest of multi-cellular animals. A sponge is a bottom-dwelling creature which attaches itself to something solid in a place where it can, hopefully, receive enough food to grow. The scientific term for sponges is Porifera which literally means ‘pore-bearing.’

Now, a new study suggests that they may have been the first animals to inhabit the Earth.

The study, led by Dr. David Gold of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), confirms that sea sponges are the source of an unusual molecule found in rocks that are 640 million years old, far before the Cambrian explosion.

We brought together paleontological and genetic evidence to make a pretty strong case that this really is a molecular fossil of sponges. This is some of the oldest evidence for animal life.

Dr. Gold declared.

The scientists have unearthed an extraordinary number of fossils from the time of the Cambrian explosion (circa 521–514 million years ago). Based on the fossil record, some of them have argued that contemporary animal groups ‘exploded’ onto Earth, very quickly morphing from single-celled organisms to complex multicellular animals in a relatively short geological time span.

However, the fossils that are known from before the Cambrian explosion are peculiar in many respects, making it extremely difficult to determine which type of animal was the first to the evolutionary line. Dr. Gold, Prof. Roger Summons, also from MIT, and their colleagues have been looking for the answer in molecular fossils.

The team has focused on 24-isopropylcholestane (24-ipc for short), a lipid molecule, or sterol, that is a modified version of cholesterol.

In 1994, scientists first found this molecule in Cambrian and slightly older rocks, and they speculated that sponges or their ancestors might be the source. In 2009, they confirmed the presence of 24-ipc in 640-million-year-old rock samples from Oman, potentially representing the oldest evidence for animal life.

It is known that some modern sea sponges and certain types of algae produce 24-ipc today, but the question is: which organism was around to make the molecule 640 million years ago?

In order to answer this question, Dr. Gold and co-authors sought to first identify the gene responsible for making 24-ipc, then find the organisms that carry this gene, and finally trace when the gene evolved in those organisms.

They looked through the genomes of about 30 different organisms, including plants, fungi, algae, and sea sponges, to see what kinds of sterols each organism produces and to identify the genes associated with those sterols.

What we found was this really interesting pattern across most of eukaryotic life.

Dr Gold added to his declaration.

By comparing genomes, they identified a single gene responsible for producing certain kinds of sterols depending on the number of copies of the gene an organism carries. They found that sea sponge and algae species that produce 24-ipc have an extra copy of SMT when compared with their close relatives.

Furthermore, the scientists compared the copies to determine how they were all related and when each copy of the gene first appeared. They then mapped the relationships onto an evolutionary tree and used evidence from the fossil record to determine when each SMT gene duplication occurred.

However, no matter how they manipulated the timing of the evolutionary tree, they found that sea sponges evolved the extra copy of SMT much earlier than algae, and they did so around 640 million years ago. This is the same time period in which 24-ipc was found in rocks.

Image Source: cwf-fcf.org.

Now We Know Where The Earth Is Most Sensitive To Climate Swings

February 20, 2016 By Germaine Hicks Leave a Comment

Climate-change-earth-melting.-Source-Bruce-Rolff-Shutterstock-e1409508274516

Some parts of the world may be more sensitive to temperature changes than others.

Thanks to new research published Wednesday in the journal Nature, now we know where the Earth is most sensitive to climate swings. Global satellites have identified areas with vegetation most susceptible to fluctuations to climate and the findings are very interesting.

Global warming’s most recent effect is the minimal slowing down of the sea level rise. However, the increase in planet Earth’s overall temperture may pose different effects on different parts of the world. In this new study, a team of scientists developed a map that reveals which regions on Earth are more sensitive to climate variability.

Most climate scientists know that planet Earth’s temperatures are continuously warming. They also know that some parts of the world may be more sensitive to temperature changes than others. What has been lacking is a way to identify how sensitive an ecosystem is and how to apply an indicator of sensitivity of the various parts of the planet for comparison.

That being said, researchers from the University of Bergen in Norway developed a metric to measure the climatic sensitivity of various ecosystems. Nicknamed the Vegetation Sensitivity Index, the map reveals how much a region on the planet will be affected by warming temperatures.

The research team used satellite data collected from 2000 to 2013 to look at plants at a global scale. They identified climate drivers of vegetation productivity on monthly timescales and computed the sensitivity index.

Moreover, the 14-year worth of satellite data measured the key climate variables of air temperature, water availability and cloud cover. The index then compares these variables with the productivity of vegetation under changing climate on a global scale.

The new satellite map shows which parts of the world are more sensitive to climate change. (Photo: University of Bergen)

According to the the new map, the researchers found that the alpine regions worldwide, tropical rainforests, parts of the boreal forest belt and areas in the Arctic tundra are ecologically sensitive regions with heightened responses to climate change. Other parts of the world include prairie and steppe parts of North and South America and Central Asia as well as South American and east Australian forests.

Now we have this global picture, it can guide the next areas of research.

stated Dr. Alistair Seddon, the lead author of the new study.

As the research focused solely on how plants responded to changes in climate, Seddon told HuffPost that more research is needed to explore how such sensitivity might impact human populations.

The Washington Post reported that Dr. Thomas Lovejoy, an ecologist at George Mason University in Virginia who was not involved in the study, called the new study ‘an important advance’.

Lovejoy also stressed the research is also an underestimate of sensitivity. Since biological interactions show major ecosystem impacts can occur on top of and as part of vegetation or ecosystem impacts. So climate change should be limited to only 1.5 degrees.

All in all, the new method will reveal valuable data that can be used in assessing ecosystems and anticipating how specific parts of the world will be affected by either short- or long-term climate changes. However, predicting when and where such transitions will occur remains a challenge for the scientists.

Image Source: popularresistance.org; techtimes.com.

What Really Happens To The Missing Asteroids Up There

February 19, 2016 By Brian Galloway Leave a Comment

Asteroids are spectacularly destroyed before reaching the Sun.

New study reveals what really happens to the missing asteroids up there, in our Solar System. An international team of scientists have debunked the theory that asteroids and comets end their existence with a final plunge into the sun. It turns out, they disintegrate long before that.

Asteroids are nothing but small, airless rocky worlds revolving around the sun, that are too small to be called planets. They are also known as planetoids or minor planets. In total, the mass of all the asteroids is less than that of Earth’s moon. But despite their size, asteroids can be dangerous. Many have hit Earth in the past, and more will crash into our planet in the future.

That’s one reason scientists study asteroids and are eager to learn more about their numbers, orbits and physical characteristics. This is how they came up with this new finding regarding the death of these ‘minor planets’. The study may bring us closer to understanding how to protect the Earth from an asteroid strike.

Until recently, scientists believed that the demise of asteroids close to Earth happen in a fiery collision with the sun. But by examining nearly 9,000 near-Earth objects, or NEOs, an international team of researchers have recently found that asteroids and comets crumble long before they reach the surface of the blazing star.

So, it turns out that the asteroids are actually dying a slow death, not unlike humans in their later stages of life, they are simply breaking down.

The team’s work also helps explain several discrepancies between observations and predictions of the distribution of small objects in our Solar System. Meteors are such an object. These are effectively tiny bits of dust and rock dislodged from the surfaces of asteroids and comets that then end their lives burning up as they enter our atmosphere.

Observations and studies have established that meteors often travel in ‘streams’ that follow the path of their parent object. However, in almost all cases astronomers have been unable to match most of the meteor streams on orbits closely approaching the Sun with known parent objects.

What the latest study suggests is that the parent objects were completely destroyed when they came too close to the Sun, leaving behind streams of meteors but no parent NEOs. They also found that darker asteroids are destroyed farther from the Sun than brighter ones.

This case is explained by an earlier discovery that NEOs that approach closer to the Sun are brighter than those that keep their distance from the Sun. The fact that dark objects are more easily destroyed implies that dark and bright asteroids have a different internal composition and structure.

So, brighter asteroids, survive longer than dark asteroids, which absorb more light. And smaller asteroids disintegrate faster than bigger ones.

According to Mikael Granvik, a research scientist at the University of Helsinki and lead author of the study, their new finding allows planetary scientists to understand a variety of recent observations from a new perspective. It also leads to a more profound advance in asteroid science.

Perhaps the most intriguing outcome of this study is that it is now possible to test models of asteroid interiors simply by keeping track of their orbits and sizes.

Granvik stated.

However, the strange case of the missing asteroids is now solved. Perhaps our world would be far different today if it weren’t for the Sun destroying vast numbers of these space-borne objects.

Image Source: wallpaper4me.com.

Why Rare Minerals Are Considered To Be The New Diamonds

February 16, 2016 By Brian Galloway Leave a Comment

Oppenheimer Diamond Collection# 6513. Diamond in kimberlite matrix, 52.45 ct.

Each planet with the ability to support life has a unique fingerprint of rare minerals.

In their recently published study, scientists Robert Hazen and Jesse Ausubel divulge why rare minerals are considered to be the new diamonds.

Diamonds are, of course, ‘a girl’s best friend’ and the most precious thing a woman could receive due to its beauty and rarity. However, it seems like diamonds aren’t so rare anymore. In a paper published in the journal American Mineralogist, two experts made a list of 5,000 known minerals on earth and presented a system for classifying rarities of minerals on earth.

The authors of the article were Dr. Robert Hazen of Carnegie Institution, Washington D.C. and Professor Jesse Ausubel of the Rockefeller University, New York. The two were able to conclude that the presence of various minerals on earth is related to our planet’s ability to support life. They estimated that around 2,550 out of 5,000 minerals are the rarest on earth.

The conclusion, however, is that each planet with the ability to support life has a unique fingerprint of rare minerals. It’s also very likely that planets such as Mercury and Mars have much simpler minerals because they cannot sustain life.

In regards to the new findings, Hazen affirms:

Life depends on minerals. Life could not have begun without some of the chemical properties that minerals provided at Earth’s beginning.

The results also show that the minerals are more rare than diamond, which can be found in more than 700 locations in our planet. Among the minerals they catalogued are Bernalite, Ulrichite, Olmiite, Hazenite and Fingerite.

Fingerite is among the rarest minerals they classified. Aside from being seen in just one area in the planet, Fingerite is made up of rare elements, vanadium and copper. These two elements should exist together and form under unique and specific conditions such as near active volcanoes.

On the other hand, Hazenite forms only when the phosphorus concentration in the lake reaches high levels. The microbes in the water have to start excreting hazenite from their cells in order to survive. The tiny, colorless crystals are essentially microbial ‘poop.’

The experts are making fun of this type of mineral: ‘Yes, it’s true – hazenite happens!’

The new catalogue of the rarest minerals on Earth allows scientists to measure how abundant these resources are and to identify the locations where they can be found. For those that can be used in industries, this can be helpful in identifying the characteristics and value of the minerals.

Conclusively, the Earth is full of hidden and rare wonders that are yet to be discovered – that’s for sure. It remains to be seen what new discoveries will be able to distinguish our planet from other planets.

Image Source: gia.edu.

Transmitting From Space: ‘The Earth Looks Sick And Very, Very Fragile’

February 12, 2016 By Germaine Hicks Leave a Comment

Astronaut Scott Kelly has been in orbit longer than anyone in American history.

American astronaut Scott Kelly is transmitting from space: ‘The Earth looks sick and very, very fragile’. In one of his final interviews from the International Space Station, the astronaut commented on the home planet’s atmosphere from aboard the ISS and it sure didn’t sound very good.

Many of you may have read books and seen many movies about space. It’s quite a popular topic. But what about what happens in real life? Well, flying in space isn’t just for science fiction characters. It’s a real job. Real people can apply for it and one of those people who share a special passion for space for a long time, is called Scott Kelly.

Scott is currently in his 501st day in space over six different missions and the 321st day of his one-year mission aboard the International Space Station. He has now been in space longer than any other U.S. astronaut. He is expected to return home in March.

Until his long-awaited return, Scott spoke recently with CNN’s Chief Medical Correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta via satellite. During his time at the space station, Kelly has remained active on social media and often shares his unique perspective of the planet by posting photos.

Day 321. Beautiful #Earth. Beautiful #Africa. #GoodNight from @space_station! #YearInSpace pic.twitter.com/wmDjH28zej

— Scott Kelly (@StationCDRKelly) February 12, 2016

Because of his spectacularly encompassing vantage point, Gupta asked Kelly how he would define the Earth’s condition if it were a human body.

There are definitely parts of Asia, Central America that when you look at them from space, you’re always looking through a haze of pollution.

the astronaut declared. He also added that, as far as the atmosphere is concerned and as far as being able to see the surface, the areas mentioned above definitely looked sick. He stated, in the same declaration, that he noticed weather systems, such as tropical cyclones, in unexpected locations.

Besides expressing his concern regarding the Earth’s safety, there is something more to the astronaut’s story. Part of Scott’s current mission includes conducting a twin health study.

The study is comparing the mental and physical toll on Kelly’s body in space with his twin brother, retired astronaut Mark Kelly, who lives on Earth. The medical tests are measuring the impact of zero gravity on bone density, vision, blood, heart and cells, as well as the psychological impact on mood, stress and cognitive functions.

Kelly confessed that he is doing well, although he feels like he’s been up in space for a really long time and looks forward to getting home soon.

In short, there is nothing to be alarmed about. Kelly finally spoke of how being in space was an amazing experience and that there was indeed a possibility of alien life out there somewhere.

Image Source: nasa.gov.

Watch Out, Planet Earth – An Asteroid Is About To Pass Close By

February 4, 2016 By Rebecca McGhee Leave a Comment

‘Oh… I just wanted to say hello. I’m not staying.’

’Watch out, planet Earth – an asteroid is about to pass close by’ – this is how the experts’ warning would sound like. According to NASA, there is this small asteroid is expected to fly past the Earth during the first week of March.

The asteroid (as long as a basketball court) is called asteroid 2013 TX68. Two years ago, it flew past Earth at a comfortable distance of about 1.3 million miles (2 million kilometers) and who now will fly by our planet again in a few weeks. The difference between the last time and this time is that this time it may be much closer.

So close and yet so far.

The predicted range of distance at which the asteroid will go by is very wide, due to the short tracking time of it, which provided limited information for making future tracking predictions.

It could come as close as 11,000 miles (17,700 kilometers) — less than 5 percent of the distance from Earth to the moon — or stay up to 9 million miles (14.5 million km) away during the flyby.

NASA officials said.

On the other hand, scientists that are interested in the case, hope that the asteroid will be close enough to track more thoroughly during its next flyby, for the purposes of adding extra data to the study and to predict the asteroid’s future path.

Graphic indicating the possible locations asteroid 2013 will be in at the time of its closest approach to Earth on March 5.

Experts believe that if an object as big as asteroid 2013 TX68 were to penetrate the Earth’s atmosphere, it would generate an air burst that is twice as powerful as the one produced during the meteor crash in Chelyabinsk.

Despite the expected close flyby of 2013 TX68 on March 5, there is no danger that the asteroid will collide with Earth on this pass, researchers said. However, there is an extremely slight chance — less than 1 in 250 million — of an impact on Sept. 28, 2017, and even lower odds during flybys in 2046 and 2097.

The possibilities of collision on any of the three future flyby dates are far too small to be of any real concern.

CNEOS manager Paul Chodas declared. He also added that he fully expects any future observations to reduce this probability even more.

As a conclusion, it is not as bad as it looks. But as you lay down in bed on March 5, think of the rocky body that is about to fly past the Earth – it should suddenly make you feel small.

Image Source: yournewswire.com; www.space.com.

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