What if the Dinosaurs Killer Asteroid Hit the Earth Today?

65 million years ago, dinosaurs ruled the Earth. They walked where we walk today, breathed the same air, and fought on the same land. For 14 million years, dinosaurs of all kinds lived on Earth—those that flew, lived on land, and swam in the sea.

Then, one day, something happened that wiped out all the dinosaurs in just a few hours. To understand why, we need to go back about 6.5 million years. A small piece of an asteroid hit a larger asteroid 20 million miles away from Earth. This collision sent the large asteroid toward Earth at 22,000 miles per hour. As it got closer, it sped up to 70,000 kilometers per hour and turned into a fiery mass due to friction. This asteroid, which was 11 to 15 kilometers long and weighed 2 trillion metric tons, crossed the Atlantic Ocean in four minutes. It was so bright that it blinded many animals on Earth before it hit the ground.

The asteroid struck a valley in Mexico with the force of 10 hydrogen bombs, creating a temperature of 25,000 degrees Celsius. The explosion sent millions of tons of earth particles into space, creating a crater 150 kilometers wide and 20 kilometers deep. This impact caused a huge earthquake, tsunamis, and volcanic eruptions that rained fire over an 800-kilometer radius, turning almost all living creatures in that area to dust and ash.

Flying dinosaurs survived the earthquake but soon faced other dangers. Dust and debris from the explosion began falling back to Earth 40 minutes later, creating a deadly storm traveling at 6,000 kilometers per hour. Thick clouds blocked the sun, making the Earth dark.

The temperature on Earth rose to 100 degrees Celsius, boiling water and killing most trees and plants. Within 40 minutes, the temperature reached 200 degrees Celsius, killing dinosaurs far from the impact site. After the explosion, 95% of the land was cleared of life. However, some small animals, weighing less than 30 kilograms, managed to survive. These small mammals, unlike the large dinosaurs, later evolved and repopulated the Earth.

Today, asteroids still approach Earth, but most are small and burn up in the atmosphere. Larger ones often fall into the sea, which covers 70% of the Earth’s surface, where few people live. But what if a big asteroid like the one that killed the dinosaurs were to hit Earth again? Could modern technology protect us, or would we be helpless?

Scientists have many theories about global catastrophes, including another massive asteroid impact. In 2013, a 20-meter asteroid exploded over Chelyabinsk, Russia, injuring 15,000 people and causing destruction equal to 26 Hiroshima bombs. Imagine an asteroid the size of Mount Everest traveling at 65,000 kilometers per hour toward your city. Its brightness would blind people before it hits, creating an explosion a billion times more powerful than the Hiroshima bomb, devastating everything within a 1,000-kilometer radius.

Humans currently lack the technology to prevent such a disaster. We can’t even predict earthquakes accurately or prevent their damage. A massive asteroid impact would cause huge fires, earthquakes, tsunamis, and atmospheric changes, leading to widespread destruction. Darkness from dust clouds would stop photosynthesis, killing plants and the animals that eat them, collapsing ecosystems.

Reflecting on these events, some find parallels with religious prophecies about the end of the world. In Islamic teachings, for instance, signs of the Day of Judgment are described in ways similar to the aftermath of such a catastrophe. Regardless of beliefs, the possibility of such a disaster reminds us of our planet’s vulnerability.

May we be spared from such calamities and remain aware of our world’s fragility.