Planet X is coming! Planet X is coming!

[dobbie]

And on top of everything else, Planet X has entered our solar system, according to internet rumor. It’s coming closer to us in May 2011 (cough). Well, there’s no rest for the wicked. Ha.

Meantime, web comments cross Planet X off reality list
http://answers.yahoo.com/question/index?qid=20101127170531AAOXSIq

1) Nibiru (Planet X) doesn't exist, but the cranks who believe it does exist won't accept this and keep predicting dates for its appearance. First it was going to pass by the Earth in May 2003. Then it was supposed to become visible from Australia on 15th May 2009. Then it was supposed to be visible in 2010 and now May 2011. It keeps failing to appear, but the cranks will never come out and say "OK, it doesn't exist" they'll just keep on putting back the date of its appearance.

2) If Nibiru did exist, and was going to hit us in a little over a year, it would be visible with a naked eye.

3) And it is really, really tough to hide a planet, not only from the professionals, but the legions of amateurs as well (world wide). The equipment these days is way too good.

Where’s Waldo?
Planet Nibiru's 3600 year orbit (uh-hem)

The 3600 year long orbit of Nibiru (Planet X) brings it between Mars and Jupiter. It's due to come closest to the sun in May 2011.

I find it rather hard to tell it all with a straight face.

[dobbie]

Doses of Planet X rumors

http://paranormal.about.com/od/zsitchinniburu/a/Is-Nibiru-Approaching.htm
1) Planet X now beyond orbit of Mars (cough)

Nibiru's orbit around the Sun is highly elliptical, taking it out beyond the orbit of Pluto at its farthest point and bringing it as close to the Sun as the far side of the asteroid belt (a ring of asteroids that is known to occupy a band of space between the orbits of Mars and Jupiter). It takes Nibiru 3,600 years to complete one orbital journey, and it was last in this vicinity around 160 B.C.E.

http://www.csicop.org/si/show/myth_of_nibiru_and_the_end_of_the_world_in_2012
2) Cover up, naturally

Although astronomers and space scientists are tracking Nibiru (Planet X), this information is being kept from the public as part of a worldwide conspiracy. This official silence cannot be maintained for much longer, however, since by 2009 Nibiru will be visible to the naked eye from the southern hemisphere.

[dobbie]

An astronomer receives comments that insist on the existence of Nirbiru (Planet X):
http://www.csicop.org/si/show/myth_of_nibiru_and_the_end_of_the_world_in_2012/
[quote]I normally receive about a dozen questions per week from the public dealing mostly with life in the universe, but sometimes they include UFOs and visiting aliens. Nibiru seemed different, since it was claimed to be an actual planet that was being tracked by astronomers but hidden from the public. Knowing that the astronomers of the world, both professional and amateur, are a free-spirited group who couldn’t keep a secret even if ordered to, I assumed that Nibiru was the sort of Internet rumor that would quickly pass.

In the six months since I first mentioned Nibiru on my Web site, this topic has threatened to take over “Ask an Astrobiologist.â€

[dobbie]

Furthermore by way of information, astronomers captured photo evidence of a planet orbiting the sun beyond Pluto. A dwarf planet, it's approximately the size of Pluto--smaller than our moon.

The planet, now Eris by name, never comes within the inner solar system. It's path remains beyond the orbit of Pluto. Thus Eris ain't the fabled Planet X (Nibiru).


Animation showing the movement of Eris on the images used to discover it. Eris is indicated by the arrow. The three frames were taken over a period of three hours.

source
Eris (dwarf planet)
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Eris_(dwarf_planet)

[dobbie]

The comet and planet x

news aug 17 2011
http://news.yahoo.com/comet-elenin-poses-no-threat-earth-nasa-says-162602848.html

The comet Elenin is passing through the inner solar system right now and will make its closest approach to Earth on Oct. 16. The comet has sparked an Internet firestorm among believers who claim its approach is linked to Earth's destruction, a rogue "planet" called Nibiru and a NASA conspiracy to cover it all up.

Now NASA is stressing the simple truth: Comet Elenin is just an icy comet —and a wimpy one at that — which poses no threat to our planet.

Take, for example, Elenin's "close" approach to Earth. That closest point is still out in deep space, a distant 22 million miles (35 million kilometers) from our planet. That's more than 90 times the distance from the Earth to the moon.

The speculations by comet Elenin doomsayers claiming that the comet will align with other planets or celestial bodies to wreak havoc on Earth are just not true.

"Any approximate alignments of comet Elenin with other celestial bodies are meaningless, and the comet will not encounter any dark bodies that could perturb its orbit, nor will it influence us in any way here on Earth," said a scientist at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory.

"Often, comets are portrayed as harbingers of gloom and doom in movies and on television, but most pose no threat to Earth. Comet Elenin, the latest comet to visit our inner solar system, is no exception."

Comet Elenin was discovered on Dec. 10, 2010 by astronomer Leonid Elenin of Russia, who made the find using a remote-controlled observatory based in New Mexico. At the time, the comet was about 401 million miles (647 million km) from Earth. It is fairly faint and not expected to dazzle skywatchers.

Since then, the comet (officially known as C/2010 X1) has made its way into the inner solar system, giving rise to many rumors — some outlandish — that link comet Elenin to 2012 end-of-the-world theories and other disaster scenarios.

Q&A:
Will comet Elenin block out the sun, causing three days of darkness? No, the comet won't cross the face of the sun as seen from Earth, and even if it did it's much too small to have an effect.

Will the comet pass between the Earth and the moon? No, it will be 90 times farther way.

Will comet Elenin cause shifting tides or earthquakes on Earth? Not at all.

"So you've got a modest-sized icy dirtball that is getting no closer than about 22 million miles. It will have an immeasurably miniscule influence on our planet. By comparison, my subcompact automobile exerts a greater influence on the ocean's tides than comet Elenin ever will."

Comet Elenin and a hidden object? Another theory rampant on the Internet is that comet Elenin is actually a type of failed star known as a "brown dwarf," or could be affected by another unknown planet or star, such as a rogue object called Nibiru suggested by many believers or brown dwarf star.

A comet is nothing like a brown dwarf. And comets are far too small to have a measureable gravitational influence on anything.

Whether the comet will be visible to the unaided eye remains to be seen.

This intrepid little traveler will offer astronomers a chance to study a relatively young comet that came here from well beyond our solar system's planetary region. After a short while, it will be headed back out again, and we will not see or hear from Elenin for thousands of years.

X vs 2012 video:
http://www.space.com/12564-days-2012-nasa-scientist.html
03:25

[dobbie]

Comet Update

news oct 15 2011
http://news.yahoo.com/debris-doomsday-comet-elenin-pass-earth-sunday-164605072.html

Astronomy - The "doomsday comet" Elenin will make its closest approach to Earth Sunday (Oct. 16). Or what's left of it will, anyway.

Comet Elenin started breaking up in August after being blasted by a huge solar storm, and a close pass by the sun on Sept. 10 apparently finished it off. So what will cruise within 22 million miles of our planet Sunday is likely to be a stream of debris rather than a completely intact comet.

And the leftovers of Elenin won't return for 12,000 years.
Apocalyptic rumors circulating on the Internet portrayed the comet as a major threat to Earth.

One theory claimed Elenin would set off havoc on Earth after aligning with other heavenly bodies, spurring massive earthquakes and tsunamis.

Another held that Elenin was not a comet at all, but in fact a rogue planet called Nibiru that would bring about the end times on Earth.

"Elenin was a second-rate, wimpy little comet that never should have been noted for anything, really," an astronomer reported. "It was not even a bright one."

One day after the Elenin flyby, a small asteroid will zip close by. Like Elenin, it poses no risk of striking our home planet. The asteroid is about 21 feet wide and the size of a schoolbus. It will come within 212,000 miles of Earth – just inside the orbit of the moon – when it zips by on Monday morning (Oct. 17).

Before the icy Elenin broke up, its nucleus was likely 2 to 3 miles in diameter.

Elenin's supposed connection to earthquakes was just a correlation. Relatively strong earthquakes occur every day somewhere on Earth, so it's easy — but not statistically valid — to blame some of them on the comet's changing position.

It's time to move on to the next “armageddon.â€

[dobbie]

oh what fun with dec 21

news update dec 31 2011
http://news.yahoo.com/apocalypse-not-now-2012-doomsday-predictions-debunked-nasa-055304813.html

Astronomy - On Dec. 21, 2012, many doomsday believers fear the apocalypse — anything from a rogue planet smashing into us to our world spinning end over end. However, the world should expect nothing more next year than the winter solstice, the longest night of the year, NASA says.

Many people point to the end of the Mayan Long Count calendar on Dec. 21, 2012 as evidence of the coming apocalypse.

According to the ancient Mayan calendar, next year's winter solstice marks the end of a 144,000-day cycle. This cycle, which begins at the mythical Maya creation date, has already been repeated 12 times. The 13th will end in 2012, capping a full 5,200-year Mayan cycle of creation.

One fear is that a rogue planet that has been dubbed "Nibiru" or "Planet X" is supposedly aimed at Earth. Self-proclaimed Nibiru expert Nancy Lieder, who says she is in contact with the aliens from Zeta Reticuli, first said Nibiru would cause widespread disaster in May 2003, only to change it to Dec. 21, 2012.

There is, however, no evidence that Nibiru is real.

There is no basis for the claim that it might be lurking behind the sun, as it could not have hidden from observation until now. If such a planet was headed toward Earth by Dec. 21, 2012, it would already be visible to the naked eye.

There are also concerns that planets or stars might line up in ways that will transform Earth. For instance, some theorists claim that from our point of view, the sun will cross in front of the plane of our galaxy on Dec. 21. However, the sun already does this twice a year.

In fact, the sun will eventually cross the plane of our galaxy. However, the sun is about 67 light-years from the galactic plane, so it should take several million years to do so.

Some also claim that gravitational effects from planets lining up with each other will somehow affect Earth. However, there is no planetary alignment due on Dec. 21, 2012.â€

[dobbie]

Nibiru is still creeping toward Earth (cough). A.k.a. Planet X, it was seen in the daytime sky July 2012.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nC8GXpnuVJ4&feature=player_detailpage#t=120s

Wait a minute, Venus was seen in the daytime July 2012.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tpoQo_mE9M4
Planet X was really just Planet V?

[Lausten]

This is a weird thread. I'm assuming there is a lot of sarcasm here, so I'm not working through the details.

Tracie Harris talked about how she tries not to get sucked into the discussions where you respond to a believer's prompts to explain some phenomena or another. I'm sure we've all been there, someone makes some outrageous claim, you raise your skepticism, then they say "well, then, how do you explain it?" You go back and forth, draining yourself coming up with evidence to their every objection and they end with something like, "well, it still could be true". She now tries to end it before it starts, just refusing to offer explanations,instead just pointing out the unscience-ness of their claim.

[dobbie]

I myself think the whole thing is bull. But I know a couple of people who believe it.