Question 1

True or false: Apophis will be visible to the naked eye in some parts of the world during its 2029 flyby.

Accepted Answer

True. It will brighten to magnitude 3.1—like a faint star—visible from Europe, Africa, and Asia without telescopes.

Question 2

True or false: Apophis was named after the Egyptian god of chaos, a serpent that threatens the sun god Ra.

Accepted Answer

True. Its discoverers chose the name fittingly, as the asteroid symbolizes destruction and darkness in Egyptian mythology.

Question 3

True or false: Apophis will definitely hit Earth in 2029, causing a global catastrophe.

Accepted Answer

False. Current calculations show Apophis will miss Earth by about 31,000 km in 2029—closer than some satellites, but no impact.

Question 4

True or false: Apophis is larger than the asteroid that wiped out the dinosaurs.

Accepted Answer

False. Apophis is about 370 meters wide, while the dinosaur-killer was roughly 10-15 km across—far more massive.

Question 5

True or false: NASA’s OSIRIS-REx spacecraft is scheduled to visit Apophis after its 2029 flyby.

Accepted Answer

True. Renamed OSIRIS-APEX, the probe will study Apophis up close after delivering samples from Bennu.

Question 6

True or false: Apophis is the only near-Earth asteroid known to have its own moon.

Accepted Answer

False. Many asteroids have moons, like Didymos with Dimorphos; Apophis has no confirmed satellite.

Question 7

True or false: Apophis is so dark that it reflects less than a quarter of the sunlight hitting it.

Accepted Answer

True. Its surface is carbon-rich and charcoal-like, with an albedo around 0.23, making it faint and hard to spot.

Question 8

True or false: If Apophis passed through a specific gravitational 'keyhole' in 2029, it could hit Earth in 2036.

Accepted Answer

True. A tiny gravitational keyhole near Earth could alter its orbit, but radar data has ruled out this scenario for now.

Apophis Trivia Questions