Date:         Fri, 17 Jan 2003 22:04:29 +1300
Reply-To:     Andrew Grebneff <andrew.grebneff@STONEBOW.OTAGO.AC.NZ>
Sender:       Vanagon Mailing List <vanagon@gerry.vanagon.com>
From:         Andrew Grebneff <andrew.grebneff@STONEBOW.OTAGO.AC.NZ>
Subject:      Re: Friday - hazards to our van (LVC)
In-Reply-To:  <003101c2be8f$0a572800$6601a8c0@tdaoffice>
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>Well, as they say a size of a football field

10km is a BIG football field!

>caused an ice age that wiped
>out the dinosaurs,

No ice age resulted. But there were tsunamis kilometers high and global fires.

>then the size of a football at the same speed can do
>what? I'm no physicist or rocket scientists but I still do not believe it. I
>think it could have caused a massive explosion. I think we are much too
>gullible. But what do I know for sure.

Explosions result from large masses impacting... a small chip of
natural stainless steel (not football-sized at all) wouldn't have
enough momentum to make even a small crater, but has enough energy to
damage a flimsy sheetmetal cosntuction like a car body.

>I just can not believe a rock that size traveling at high enough speed to
>burn in our atmosphere will only go through a vehicle without an explosion.

It was constantly ablating due to heat as it descended; there was
almost nothing left when it landed.