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How Asteroid and Comet Collisions Have Shaped Human History and What Dangers Lie Ahead
Ensconced in its tiny solar system, warmed by the Sun, the Earth seems safe from the unpredictable destructive forces in outer space. In Fire on Earth, however, John and Mary Gribbin explain that comets and asteroids from the depths of space have collided with our planet throughout its history, wreaking havoc and altering the course of history.
These events are not confined to our past. Recently, astronomers discovered Hale-Bopp, a giant comet visible to the naked eye in the spring of 1997 that rivals the size of the asteroid which brought on the eventual demise of the dinosaurs and a devastating ice age sixty-five million years ago. Astronomers have predicted that such an event may occur again in the next million years.
Tracing the history of these unpredictable collisions from prehistory to the present, the authors paint a sobering picture of the many dangers our fragile planet faces, and address the unsettling question of what we can do when an Earthbound comet is discovered.
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Acknowledgements
Introduction
Table 1: Planetary Properties
1 The Death of the Dinosaurs
2 The Smoking Gun
3 A Close Encounter - or Two!
4 Battered Worlds
5 Halfway to the Stars
6 Breaking Up is Not so Hard to Do
7 Cosmic Winters
8 Cycles of Doom
9 Fire on Earth
10 What to Do Further Reading
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