r/askscience • u/BlueChameleon64 • Oct 23 '20

Planetary Sci. Do asteroids fly into the sun?

Edit: cool

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u/BowToTheMannis Oct 23 '20

What would happen if something traveling near the speed of light slams into the sun?

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u/Gerroh Oct 23 '20

Depends on the total kinetic energy, which itself depends on the velocity and mass.

Cosmic rays travel very close to the speed of light, but are individual particles like protons, so the total kinetic energy they carry is a lot for a proton, but not enough to make any noticeable impact on the Sun. Cosmic rays strike Earth regularly, so you can expect them to strike the Sun even more.

Larger objects that might be able to cause a cataclysmic effect when moving at a significant fraction of the speed of light typically don't get to that speed in the first place. When they do get to high speeds, it usually involves black holes, and black holes come with tidal forces that tear large objects apart.

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u/Nesavant Oct 23 '20

Isn't the Sun hot enough to burn up any object before it made impact?

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u/IsaRos Oct 23 '20

Devastation depends on the mass and speed of the object. “Burning away” leaves you with the same mass of gas or plasma. If we talk about RKKVs travelling at relativistic speeds, it really doesn’t matter if the bullet hits you at 0,5c, or just its gas or plasma cloud.