Any of numerous small celestial bodies composed of rock and metal that revolve around the sun, with orbits lying mainly between
Mars and Jupiter. Their diameters are
usually between a few and several hundred kilometers.
Meteor over Sinai is
interpreted by Arabs as a portent of grave events in the
Red Sea area, by B. Ingegnoli . . . Buy this art print at
AllPosters.com.
Several hundred thousand asteroids have been
discovered so far and thousands more are discovered each year. Undoubtedly
hundreds of thousands more are too small to be seen from Earth.
Our planet Earth has been bombarded by these celestials bodies since its very
beginnings. It is speculated that every one hundred and fifty thousand years a global catastrophe sized asteroid
1 kilometer or more in diameter hits our
planet.
We have cataloged 99% asteroids larger than 100 kilometers in diameter, and about half of those in between 100 and 10 kilometers. But we have cataloged very few of the ones below 10 kilometers, and any of those could hit the Earth with catastrophic results.
The disappearance of the dinosaurs some sixty-five million years ago is now widely believed to have been the result of such an event.
An asteroid ten kilometers wide allegedly hit the Earth at the Yucatan peninsula
where evidence of it, including an enormous crater (Chicxulub), have been
discovered unleashing an explosion in the magnitude of a billion megatons.
Such impact would have blasted tons of
sulfur-rich rock and dust high into the atmosphere, encircling the globe and igniting the skies.
Fiery debris would rain back down upon the earth, and the skies would be darkened for months, if not years, ensuing what is now called a
"Nuclear Winter." Ninety percent of the world's biomass would have been incinerated, and over seventy percent of the world's species would have disappeared, including the dinosaurs. If such an event
occurs within humanity's extent span, our species could be obliterated.
This website is best viewed with the latest
versions of
Microsoft
Internet Explorer,
Firefox or
Netscape.
Occultopedia
makes extensive use of
Flash and Scripting in its pages and interface. Make certain your browser
permissions are set
accordingly and that you have the latest
Flash plug-in for the full experience, proper look and accurate
layout.
If using
Microsoft
Internet Explorer 7, clicking (or pressing the SPACEBAR or ENTER) on the
Flash graphics is necessary to activate it. If using the latest versions
of
Firefox or
Netscape, adjusting the browser
trust permissions to "ENABLE MAXIMUM SITE FUNCTIONALITY" is required to fully
enjoy Occultopedia's features and
Flash graphics. You can do it with confidence. This site does not contain any viruses or any malicious software
or script.
As you may have noticed, Occultopedia is being updated.
Navigation areas are completed, but the word definition pages are not. The
layout in these pages might not look as good as they should. Updating them
may take a while, so please, be patient and understanding. I am only one
person working on this site in my spare time.
As soon as these updates are concluded I will begin setting up the
Forums, so we can all discuss the
occult, paranormal and extraordinary, and whatever else we please.
Registration will be required.
Occultopedia's images and art are also undergoing an adjustment to
Flash based graphics. This process may take some time as well, so again, be
patient and understanding.
Occultopedia is the genuine article, the
original and the best internet index of the extraordinary and uncanny,
shamelessly copied by many, but never equaled. Online since the
early 90s at first in a free web space provider, and in 1997 finally
with its own domain name and hosting Occultopedia still is the
principal online resource for those looking for the unexplained, the
curious and the unusual.
Occultopedia respects your privacy. As
such, no cookies or any other tracking software will be installed as a
part of this website's original programming. I do not seek to obtain any personal information
beyond what is volunteered through electronic communications
(e.g. emails & forms).
Occultopedia may appear to be a for profit site, but my site is
not really a commercial one. All of the commercial links are from affiliate
programs, and the little revenue I get from these is to pay for hosting,
bandwidth that can be quite costly if you have a lot of traffic, graphics and
pages and any other expenses related to Occultopedia's upkeep and maintenance.
For more details, visit my
ordering
information page.
Occultopedia is a
FREE online
resource available to the whole world. Usage of my word definitions and articles
by educational institutions, teachers and students alike, is here by granted. For more information, please consult my
intellectual property rights, warranties and
disclaimers information page. Support Occultopedia and make it your
online shopping
destination. If you prefer, you can also make a donation.
HELP FOOT THE BILL: this website
is created and maintained by one guy, who also pays the hosting bill.
Please donate if you like and/or use Occultopedia.
Tell me what you think about
my website, send me some
feedback.
Please, also report any
problems, errors and dead links. Let
me as well point out that
English is not my second language, but my sixth. Any enlightenment on
grammar and spelling errors
is
appreciated.
Participate in Occultopedia and submit a word
definition or article for the occult encyclopedia at my
entry submission
page. If you would like to suggest a web site or page for
addition into Occultopedia's links database, please go to my
