Vol 4 Chapter 703: Turned out to be an asteroid

"Professor, we shouldn't carry the microorganisms on the meteorite, right? I have never touched the meteorite."
Niu Dazhi rubbed his clothes with his hands, giving him the illusion that he was already dirty.
Lu Xiuwen said in an easy-going tone: "Don't be nervous, I ask you to come back for testing, just to ensure that the microorganisms in the meteorite have not spread out.
"Theoretically speaking, you should not be contaminated with these microorganisms, and testing is only a routine matter."
While several people were talking, an astronomy professor from the University of Aerospace Science and Technology brought two graduate students over to communicate with Lu Xiuwen.
Since this meteorite comes from outer space, it involves the field of astronomy.
"Professor Lu, this is the order from the headquarters. I am responsible for astronomical research on this meteorite." The astronomy professor of the University of Aerospace Science and Technology stepped forward to shake hands with Lu Xiuwen.
"Hello, hello, welcome, Professor Lang, please sit down first, please sit down first." Lu Xiuwen shook hands with him and invited him to sit down.
The astronomy professor is named Lang Tongguang, and he is also a pivotal figure in the domestic astronomy circle.
Due to the emergence of the star beast world, astronomy has been a hot topic in recent decades.
Fang Yuan felt that Professor Lang Tongguang was familiar, as if he had seen it in the TV news.
After the two of them were polite, Lang Tongguang asked directly: "When can I see that meteorite?"
"We are working on microbiological protection. After the protection is completed, we can go to see it. It will take about an hour or so. Can Professor Lang wait?" Lu Xiuwen checked the time on his watch.
One hour is not too long. Lang Tongguang also applied to the headquarters when he learned that microorganisms had been found in the meteorite. He knew that the microorganisms in the meteorite might come from other planets, which has important research value for astronomy.
Next.
The crew of the Shenzhou ship successively carried out microbiological tests, and after confirming that there was no problem, they were allowed to go home.
Fang Yuan and the others did not leave, and when they saw Lu Xiuwen and Lang Tongguang discussing about meteorites, they went over and listened.
About an hour later, a researcher came over and reported to Lu Xiuwen: "Professor, the protection work is complete."
"Is it OK to see a meteorite?" Lang Tongguang was a little anxious.
After all, this is a meteorite with microbes. It is very likely to come from another planet where life exists. This is a major breakthrough for the study of astronomy.
Before that, humans had found fossils of microorganisms in meteorites hundreds of thousands of years ago, but they had never found living microorganisms.
This time, live microorganisms were actually found in the meteorite, and the excitement in Lang Tongguang's heart is indescribable.
Fang Yuan also followed to see the meteorite.
The group walked to the laboratory where the meteorite was stored, put on protective clothing, and then walked in to watch the meteorite up close.
The meteorite is still the meteorite.
Fang Yuan has not only seen it, but also touched it.
However, now when I see this meteorite again, I feel completely different.
The shape has not changed, but when I first saw it, I didn't know that there were microorganisms in it.
Now, when I saw this meteorite again, I knew that there were microbes that might come from extraterrestrials. This feeling was very subtle.
This meteorite is very large, about five meters in diameter, and has an irregular shape.
To the naked eye, this meteorite is a stone with high mineral content, and there is nothing special about it.
From elemental analysis, the main elements are iron and silicon, which is nothing surprising.
"Professor Lang, are the microorganisms on this meteorite really alien?" Eve looked up and down curiously, and asked a question.
"It's still not certain. However, this star should not be called a meteorite. According to the information found, it is actually an asteroid." Lang Tongguang corrected.
"Asteroid? Can five meters count as an asteroid?" Everyone was a little surprised.
Because this stone, if it is regarded as a meteorite, is considered large, but if it is regarded as an asteroid, it is too small.
"Yes, according to the rules of asteroids, stars with a diameter of more than three meters and less than 300 kilometers are called asteroids. Although this star is small, it does meet the standards of asteroids." Lang Tongguang confirmed.
Fang Yuan blinked his eyes and said, "You mean, this stone orbits the sun?"
"Yes, this asteroid is a near-Earth asteroid. Although it is small in size, humans have actually discovered it because the orbit is very close to the earth..."
Lang Tongguang began to explain in astronomy: "If this asteroid is not brought back by you, every time it orbits the sun, when it approaches the earth, it will be affected by the gravity of the earth, causing the orbit to deflect at a small angle. , There is a possibility of hitting the earth in the future.
"However, because this asteroid is too small, even if it falls on the earth, it will not cause disaster, so the astronomy community has not issued a warning.
"In fact, an asteroid of 5 meters to 10 meters like this will enter the Earth’s atmosphere every year on average.
"The energy released is about the equivalent of an atomic bomb, but most of it will be vaporized in the atmosphere, so it will not have much impact on the earth."
Several people did not expect that such a five-meter-diameter stone would turn out to be an asteroid, and they were all a little surprised.
Fang Yuan asked curiously: "So how big an asteroid does it need to fall into the earth to cause disaster?"
"Asteroids with a diameter of about 50 meters hit the Earth once in a thousand years on average, and the resulting explosion is equivalent to the Tunguska explosion at the beginning of the 20th century. An asteroid of this order of magnitude hits the Earth, and the Earth can still bear it. Not too serious. If the diameter of the asteroid reaches one kilometer, it will cause a devastating disaster." Lang Tongguang patiently answered several people's questions.
"Are there many asteroids like this?" Fang Yuan asked.
"At present, the number of asteroids discovered by humans in the solar system is 120,000 for the named asteroids."
Lang Tongguang continued to popularize science: "However, most of the orbits of asteroids are between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter. That is, most of them are in the asteroid belt.
"The orbit of the asteroid belt is between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter.
"In the solar system, the planet closest to the sun is Mercury, followed by Venus, and then Earth.
"Mars is in the outer circle of the Earth's orbit. Outside the orbit of Mars is the asteroid belt, and then Jupiter."