Why does the impact of an asteroid which is small in size when compared to the Earth cause such damage?

Question

Why does the impact of an asteroid which is small in size when compared to the Earth cause such damage?

Answer 1

Just remember how large the earth actually is. The earth has a diameter of 7,926 miles.

An asteroid with a 1 mile diameter is much smaller than the earth, but think about how big that actually is. That's a 1-mile wide chunk of rock hitting the earth.

Answer 2

An asteroid travelling at 40,000 miles per hour has an enormous amount of energy.

Just look at what the cometary fragments did to Jupiter when they hit.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=y5jSNnitG...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dB7GcpBzu...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tbhT6KbHv...

Answer 3

Calculations suggest that an impact with a 10km diamter bit of rock would release much more energy than the simultaneous detontation of all nuclear weapons on the planet.  All out nuclear war would be a comparative vicarage garden tea party.