The Tesla Roadster blasted into orbit around the sun by Elon Musk’s SpaceX is going to pass close to Earth, according to a new study, and young earthlings may still be alive when it happens.
In fact, the space-going car with an astronaut-suited mannequin at the wheel may actually collide with our planet eventually, though the chances are fairly small and the time horizon far, far away, researchers found.
While the vehicle itself will likely last for tens of millions of years, it will pass close to Earth quite soon, relatively speaking, the researchers said in a report released Wednesday. By “close,” they mean at least as near as the Moon.
“The first close encounter with the Earth will occur in 2091,” said the astrophysicists from Canada and the Czech Republic.
That’s 73 years from now, so it’s probable that some children who watched imagery of the SpaceX Falcon Heavy rocket launching with the Tesla on Feb. 6, and of the vehicle in space afterward, will be around when the red Roadster comes back into Earth’s vicinity.
The chance the car will actually strike our planet is around 6 percent.
Send questions/comments to the editors.
Success. Please wait for the page to reload. If the page does not reload within 5 seconds, please refresh the page.
Enter your email and password to access comments.
Hi, to comment on stories you must . This profile is in addition to your subscription and website login.
Already have a commenting profile? .
Invalid username/password.
Please check your email to confirm and complete your registration.
Only subscribers are eligible to post comments. Please subscribe or login first for digital access. Here’s why.
Use the form below to reset your password. When you've submitted your account email, we will send an email with a reset code.