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Is space trying to kill us? - Ron Shaneyfelt

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How likely is it that a massive asteroid will do major damage to Earth and its inhabitants? What about the sun -- is it dying out anytime soon? And the supermassive black hole at the center of the Milky Way -- should we be worried about that? Ron Shaneyfelt assesses the dangers of space.

Additional Resources for you to Explore

The Bad Astronomy website is a great place to find answers to many of your 'spacey' questions. The scientist who directs the website is Phil Plait. I met Phil once and I know you'll be impressed with what he has to say and how easy it is to understand his explanations. You will find it here.
Phil Plait also wrote a book titled "Death From The Skies" which includes more detail about what I discussed in my video.
NASA even has a website telling you about their work to protect Earth as well as other planets they explore with their space probes. The mission of the Office of Planetary Protection is to minimize the biological contamination that may result from exploring the solar system. In other words, NASA wants to make sure humans don't send any bacteria, viruses, or anything else from Earth that will affect the environment of planets we explore (like Mars). The website can be found here.
NASA wants to make sure astronauts living for several months in space will not be hurt by space radiation. They have a website that explains how this is done here.

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TED-Ed Animations feature the words and ideas of educators brought to life by professional animators. Are you an educator or animator interested in creating a TED-Ed Animation? Nominate yourself here »

Meet The Creators

  • Animator Graeme Hawkins
  • Educator Ron Shaneyfelt
  • Narrator Ron Shaneyfelt

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