Extinction. Sixty-seven million years ago, a large asteroid impacted the Earth. It is widely accepted in the

Question:

Extinction. Sixty-seven million years ago, a large asteroid impacted the Earth. It is widely accepted in the field of paleontology that this impact played a large role in a mass extinction that included all dinosaurs and 60% of the species living at the time. Such collisions could also alter fundamental aspects of the Earth?s orbit and rotation. Consider an impact of a similar-sized asteroid of mass 8.9 ? 10¹⁵_?kg and a velocity with respect to the Earth?s surface of 90,000 km/h. If the asteroid were to strike the Earth at the equator as shown in Figure P9.69,?

(a) What is the change in the angular velocity of the Earth?

(b) What is the maximum possible change in the length of a day?

Figure P9.69