The apocalypse might arrive sooner than we think, and no, we’re not talking about Donald Trump’s presidency. A new piece from The Daily Mail went into great, horrifying detail when describing six 'cosmic disasters' that could wipe out all of humanity when we least expect it. So if you’re looking to be cheered up on the gloomiest of days, we suggest you stop reading right about now. But, if you like your bad news in bunches, you’ve come to the right place.
We’ve all seen disaster movies that depict the kind of catastrophe that would ensue if our planet were suddenly struck by a giant asteroid, right? According to astronomers, there’s a star system called WR 104 that could produce that kind of cataclysmic event. It’s currently 5,200-7,500 light years away, which is a little too close for comfort, but there’s the possibility that once it erupts, it might miss us altogether, so don’t go hunkering down in your bunker just yet.
Another disaster waiting to happen comes courtesy of our ever-expanding Sun. Thankfully, it’ll be about 7.59 billion years before the sun gets so big that it creates a solar wind powerful enough to launch our planet into oblivion.
Meanwhile, stars, those glimmering gems that light up the night sky, are also pretty death machines primed to destroy our species at any given moment. For instance, if a star comes too close to the Sun, it could “interact with the rocky 'Oort cloud'” at the edge of the solar system, which is where comets come from. If that happens, it might set the wheels in motion for a comet to strike the Earth, killing everything in its wake.
And if that wasn’t enough to stoke your doomsday anxiety, how about a good old-fashioned supernova explosion? The devastating event occurs when a star reaches the end of its lifespan. The good news is that a supernova would have to be at least 50 light years away to have any real impact on our ozone layer, and well, that likely won’t happen for another million years. And these days, we’ll take all the good news we can get.
For more cosmic disasters that could bring on the end of humanity, head over to The Daily Mail.
