Bolide impact events seem to be unlikely to happen frequently.

BUT, if this would happen now or to

the near future, these may pose a significant threat to the existence of the human race.

Bolide impact has been accused of being one of the reasons by the scientists why the extinction of
the dinosaurs and 3/4 of animal and species 66 million years ago. Bolide - Is an extremely bright
meteor or asteroid, especially one that explodes in the atmosphere; an object that came from space

A visual representation of Chicxulub impact in Yucatan Peninsula, Mexico slightly less than 66

million years ago.

CHELYABINSK METEORITE IMPACT

On February 15, 2013, a 12,000-13,000 tonnes and 17 to 20 meter wide meteor burst in the
atmosphere of Russia at 19 km/s . The explosion created a flash that is brighter than the Sun,
shockwaves, intense heat, and small meteorite fragments. Also, the energy released is equivalent to
20 to 30 Hiroshima bombs (about 470 kilotons of TNT). Due to the shockwave of the explosion of the
meteor that injured approximately 1,500 people and roughly 7,200 buildings are destroyed.

TUNGUSKA EVENT

Known as the largest bolide impact in modern times, The Tunguska event was a large explosion that
occurred in the Yeniseysk Governorate, Russia, on the morning of 30 June 1908. It is believed to
have been caused by an incoming asteroid (or comet), which never actually struck Earth but instead
exploded in the atmosphere, causing what is known as an air burst, three to six miles (5–10
kilometers) above Earth's surface.

CRETACEOUS PALEOGENE EXTINCTION EVENT

This event caused mass extinction 65 million years ago. The evidence of the impact is approx. 180
km wide and 20 km deep . The evidence can be located between at Yucatan Peninsula and
underwater inthe Gulf of Mexico. The crater was named as Chicxulub because it is centered in that

said town in Mexico.

• Ejecta - rock fragments from impact site hurls into the atmosphere and fall back to the ground
around the bowl-shaped depression.

• Impact crater - the deppresion excavated by the impactor.

(Size, velocity, and angle of approach of the impactor influence the size of the resulting impact crater)
Projectile from space could be either asteroids, comets, or meteorites.

• Asteroids - a large stony and/or metallic chunks that are confined in the region
between Mars and Jupiter (asteroid belt) which orbits the sun. (Can be big as 3 km in
diameter but mostly 100 m to 1 km wide).

• Comets - combination of ice, rock fragments, and dust which come from Oort cloud
50,000 AU (Astronomical Units, 1 Au = 240,000,000 km) away from the Sun or from the
Kuiper belt of comets 30 - 55 AU away. (Have a glowing tail caused by the solar wind
and points away from the Sun)

• Meteoroids - stony, iron, and stony-iron chunks, also from asteroid belt, but still
traveling in outer space.

• Meteorites - a meteor that survives its passage through the earth's atmosphere such
that part of it strikes the ground.

• Meteor - a small body of matter from outer space that enters the earth's atmosphere,
becoming incandescent as a result of friction and appearing as a streak of light.

EVIDENCE OF PAST IMPACTS

Past impacts can be determine through its size of impactor, exact location and impact,
speed and angle of approach of the impactor, and also the remnants of the event.

Sometimes, impact crater itself and meteorite/s could be missing, evidence of impact
can be determine throughthe materials like tektites, impact breccia, shatter cones,
impact spherules, shocked quartz, coestine (chemical traces that are high in iridium)
and the magnetic and gravity (density) anomalies and seismic reflection images

Potential Effects of a Large Impact Event

DRASTIC CHANGE IN CLIMATE CONDITIONS

Suspension of dust in the atmosphere coming from the rock can cause climate
abnormalities.

WILDFIRES

Wildfires can be an effect due to the radiation of the intense heat created by the bolide
as it travels in the atmosphere.

TSUNAMIS

This would happen impact would happen in the ocean and can create upto 1 - 3 km
high tsunamis.

ACID RAIN

The result of contamination of water vapor in the clouds by nitrogen oxides if the large
impact would happen.
 The odds of you being killed in an impact event is

1/3000 - 1/250,000 %

• There is a slim chance that it would happen, BUT STILL, it is possible to occur in any
moment.

• Mankind is now technically able to predict, sometimes several decades in advance, the
trajectory of Near Earth Objects (NEOs). NASA (National Aeronautics and Space
Administration) is already tracking and identifying all NEOs, which of them are comets
and asteroids that can pose a great threat to the Earth.

• NASA already indentified 911±17 of all the 981±19 NEOs larger than 1 km wide. 5,000 -
20,000+ mid sized (100 m - 1 km in diameter) NEOs have already been discovered.

• Knowing the physical characteristics and the paths of NEOs is important for us to able to
predict the path that are most likely to come close to Earth

• Initiating a space mission to intercept or destroy the incoming NEOs

• Preparing supplies neccesary for the survival of the affected population

GROUND SUBSIDENCE

Occurs when large amounts of groundwater have been withdrawn from certain types of rocks, such as
fine-grained sediments.

Lowering of the Earth's surface with respect to the average sea level.

CARBONATE DISSOLUTION AND COLLAPSE

Common cause of subsidence for the most part of the Philippines that has an abundance of limestone
terrains. Carbonate rocks such as limestone, composed mostly of the mineral calcite (CaCO3) are very
susceptible to dissolution by groundwater during the process of chemical weathering.  Such dissolution
can result in systems of caves and sinkholes.

EXCESSIVE GROUNDWATER WITHDRAWAL

Also a main cause of subsidence in the Philippines, like in the places of Caloocan, Malabon, Navotas,
and Valenzuela (CAMANAVA). Withdrawing plenty amount of fluids (deep well pumps for industrial
uses) in an area can cause compaction of the sedimentary rock layers and lowering of the ground
surface level.

The more water will be pumped out, the more risk of ground subsidence.

EXTRACTION OF OIL AND NATURAL GAS

Oil and Natural gas are both fluids that can exist in the pore spaces and fractures of rock, just like
water. When oil and natural gas are withdrawn from regions in the Earth near the surface, fluid
pressure provided by these fluids is reduced,With a reduction in fluid pressure, the pore spaces begin
to close and the sediment may start to compact resulting in subsidence of the surface.
Just like the extraction of groundwater, ground subsidence can occur when extracting oil and
natural gas in the ground.

EARTHQUAKE

During earthquakes, it is possilbe that a ground subsidence may occur during the liquefaction, mainly
on places with fine-grained sediments or areas that were reclaimed.

UNDERGROUND MINING METHODS

Underground mining methods cause the collapse of the surface directly above of the mind area. Some
subsidence can also occur on abandoned old portions of mines.

Lack of support and disturbance of the ground can result to ground subsidence

ISOSTATIC REBOUND

The rise of land masses after the removal of large mass through weathering and erosion or lifting of the
huge weight of ice sheets during the last glacial period, thus, uplift takes place. On the other hand,
places that recieves large amount of sediments like valleys and bodies of water tendto become much
lower in elevstino because of isostatic subsidence.
CHANGE IN SEASON

Many soils contain significant proportions of clay. Because of the very small particle size, they are
affected by changes in soil moisture content. Seasonal drying of the soil results in a lowering of both
the volume and the surface of the soil. If building foundations are above the level reached by seasonal
drying, they move, possibly resulting in damage to the building in the form of tapering cracks.

Ground subsidence causes permanent inundation of land, aggravates flooding, changes

topographic gradients, ruptures the land surface, and reduces the capacity of aquifers to store
water. 

Some of the effects may last for a long period of time, sudden ground collapses can cause
catastrophic but normally isolated and very limited reach, slow subsidence can't be notice
easily but can cause damage to property.

Mitigation

The exact place and time of a disaster related to subsidence cannot usually be predicted with
any degree of certainty. Mitigation is the best approach to these hazards.

USING MONITORING SYSTEMS