Killer #asteroid threatening Planet Earth – an annotated graphic

While we puny humans go about our days, worrying about trivial matters like shoes, the Oscars and the efficacy or otherwise of coalition governments, an asteroid with – so we’re told – the destructive power of an H-bomb is hurtling towards our favorite green and blue planet, Earth.

And not for the first time, either. These pesky asteroids keep setting themselves on an inexorable collision course with Planet Earth like stone kamikaze pilots at regular intervals across the ages of Man. So far, their aim hasn’t been too good, mostly missing us altogether, but a couple of doozies have snuck through the atmosphere and smacked Mother Earth upside the head. It can only be a matter of time etc.

E&T has covered this intergalactic terror before from a number of angles, including Nasa’s 1,000 most-wanted asteroid list, the ESA crowdsourcing asteroid watch and what exactly can we do about the asteroid threat anyway.

Click on the graphic for an expanded view.

Giant asteroid to skim past Earth

Super telescopes and ESA heavy-lift rockets – two annotated graphics

Having already celebrated the Pacific total solar eclipse earlier today, now seems like as good a time as any to punt these two space-related graphics out there for all to enjoy. It’s all about looking up in to the sky and getting big stuff up there, eh?

For your delectation and edification, we present the new generation of super-telescopes (begging the question as to why everything has to be super these days, whether it’s storms or telescopes) and the European Space Agency’s next-generation heavy-lift rockets. They don’t come cheap, you know.

Click on the graphics for an expanded view.

New generation of super-telescopes

Next-generation heavy-lift rockets

Soyuz rocket launch – an annotated graphic

Ground control to Major Tomski. Preparations for Russia’s first space launch from French Guiana are fully underway. The Soyuz rocket, carrying a pair of satellites for Europe’s Galileo navigation system, will blast off from the brand new Sinnamary spaceport near ESA’s Ariane 5 launch site.

Click on the graphic for an expanded view.

Soyuz set for Guiana launch