8 Things That Would Happen If An Asteroid Hit Earth

5. Ground Zero

Upon impact, the equivalent of more than 100 trillion tons of TNT, or a billion Hiroshima bombs, is released.

At ground zero, the asteroid and the Earth's crust is vaporised. Within a 1200 km radius of here, the fireball appears more that four times the size of the sun.

The thermal radiation causes grass, trees and clothing to ignite and anyone unlucky enough to be stood outside will suffer full-body 3rd degree burns at best (at worst, you become atoms).

The air blast that would immediately follow would flatten buildings and trees within 1000 km, and obliterate pretty much all structures including roads and bridges within 200 km.

The noise from the blast, even at a safe distance, could push 160dB, which is beyond the human pain threshold and would be like pressing your ear up against a jet engine during take off.

If you manage to survive this bit, never fear because the fun just doesn't stop with an asteroid impact ...