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Article: Crash course? Scientists wonder if a space rock could destroy life on Earth.
- Article from:
- Science World
- Article date:
- December 12, 2005
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2005 Scholastic, Inc. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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On July 16, 1994, astronomers around the world turned their telescopes toward Jupiter to witness an extraordinary event. A group of icy objects known as the Shoemaker-Levy 9 comet hurtled toward the giant planet at a speed of 60 kilometers (37 miles) per second.
As the comet hit the gaseous planet, it generated shock waves, causing large plumes of gas to shoot into Jupiter's upper atmosphere. When the blasts finally subsided, scientists discovered that Jupiter had been scarred: Gray areas of gas and dust had formed in the planet's atmosphere and remained there for several months. But for astronomers--and anyone else who had observed the catastrophic event--the ...