Impact Results
How to Use the Simulator
-
Set Diameter
Choose a size from 10 m (Chelyabinsk-class) up to 1 000 m. Larger asteroids produce exponentially bigger craters.
-
Set Velocity
Range: 11 km/s (escape velocity) to 72 km/s. Higher speed dramatically increases released energy.
-
Choose Angle
90° = maximum energy transfer. Shallower angles widen the airburst and thermal footprint.
-
Pick Composition
Iron is densest and most destructive. Icy comets release less energy per unit volume.
-
Click the Map
Drop your target marker anywhere on Earth - city, ocean, or polar ice cap.
-
Launch & Analyse
Press Launch and watch the impact animation, then read crater size, energy, seismic magnitude, and damage radii.
Frequently Asked Questions
-
The simulator uses simplified physics models inspired by accepted crater-scaling laws and kinetic-energy conversion formulae. Results are within an order of magnitude of peer-reviewed models, suitable for educational exploration. For research-grade data, consult NASA CNEOS or the Earth Impact Effects Program.
-
The fireball radius is the zone where radiant heat would be intense enough to instantly vaporise or combust everything at the surface. Beyond it, thermal radiation still causes severe (3rd-degree) burns out to the thermal damage radius shown in the results.
-
Iron meteorites (7 800 kg/m³) are densest and most destructive. Stone/rocky (3 000 kg/m³) are the most common. Carbonaceous chondrites (2 000 kg/m³) are carbon-rich and fragile. Ice/Comet (1 000 kg/m³) nuclei often disintegrate in the atmosphere, as with Shoemaker-Levy 9.
-
Impact angle determines how much kinetic energy couples into the target rock. A vertical 90° strike transfers maximum energy downward, creating the largest crater. Shallower trajectories redirect energy horizontally, producing elongated craters and larger airblast footprints.
-
Key benchmarks: Chelyabinsk 2013 (~20 m, ~500 kt TNT), Tunguska 1908 (~60 m, ~10-15 Mt TNT), Meteor Crater Arizona (~50 m iron, 1.2 km crater), and the Chicxulub impactor (~10 km, ~100 million Mt TNT) that ended the dinosaurs 66 million years ago.
-
Yes. The simulator is entirely browser-based, fictional, and transmits no personal data. It aligns with physics, earth science, and astronomy curricula for secondary and tertiary education. All scenarios are purely hypothetical.
-
Stony objects smaller than about 25 m typically disintegrate in the upper atmosphere, producing an airburst rather than a crater. Stony asteroids generally need to be 50-100 m to survive entry; iron meteorites can survive at diameters as small as 20-25 m due to their higher structural strength.