Why Would the Government Want To Hide Proof of an Asteroid Strike? | Unveiled

Why Would the Government Want to Hide Proof of an Asteroid Strike?

Picture the scene. You’re happily going about your daily business when suddenly the sky grows dark, the winds pick up, and everyone around you begins to scream in terror. Without any prior warning, an asteroid strike has triggered the end of the world… and you’re caught right in the middle of it. How did it come to this? And why weren’t you at least told about it beforehand?

This is Unveiled, and today we’re answering the extraordinary question; why would the government want to hide proof of an asteroid strike?

Of all the doomsday possibilities out there, an asteroid strike is perhaps the most high-profile. The consensus is that it was an asteroid about seven miles wide that killed off the dinosaurs around sixty-six million years ago, when it impacted close to what’s now the coast of Mexico. The incredible event is then thought to have triggered thousands of years’ worth of planet-wide adaptation, as the non-avian dinos perished in a new and (for them) toxic environment, while the rise of the mammals took hold. Clearly, because the dinosaurs weren’t quite as cognitively advanced as we are, and because they didn’t have a civilization to speak of, the asteroid will’ve taken them quite by surprise. But fast forward from then to now, and an approaching hunk of space rock today represents quite a different prospect for all on planet Earth, even if it does have the potential to destroy the entire world. Now, there are smart and intuitive humans around who can spot an asteroid long before it arrives, and that should give us at least a little bit of comfort. Or should it?

Government coverup conspiracies have taken quite a hold these days, as the link between the “powers that be” and the general public can appear at times both more strained and more distant than ever before. The result is that there are now various, variously contested claims that the government is hiding something big from everyone else. We took a closer look at the prospect of aliens in another recent video, but now it’s the turn of asteroids… because why would a government want to hide proof of an imminent impact event?

First, let’s underline that we’re not claiming in this video that any government actually is engaging in an asteroid coverup… we’re merely imagining the reasons why they might do so. And, next, let’s crisply and quickly get the first possible reason out in the open; the need (or desire) to avoid public panic. This reasoning so often comes up whenever the social impact of an upcoming apocalypse is considered, and perhaps with good reason. In this case, if an asteroid was coming and everyone did know about it, perhaps there really would be a solid helping of reckless abandon. Lawlessness in the streets, and a general breakdown of society as people ditched their jobs and responsibilities in favour of other things in this, their last few days on Earth. It needn’t always be so dark, however, as there’s reason to believe that what people are most likely to do is just strive to be with their loved ones. The infamous false alarm missile alert that was sent to residents of Hawaii in 2018 seemingly proves this… with little to no reports of unruliness during the few minutes when it was genuinely thought that nuclear missiles really were on their way. Instead, there were multiple stories of friendship and kindness placed on record, which is a little more encouraging. What would you do during the countdown to asteroid arrival? Do you think “public panic” counts as reason enough to hush up an imminent disaster? Let us know in the comments!

There are perhaps some less straightforward (and less well-meaning) reasons as to why the government might wish to keep quiet, however. The 2021 movie “Don’t Look Up” shines a fresh light on two of the more popular themes within various conspiracy claims: 1) that money drives everything, and 2) that there’s a kind of rampant self-centredness in elite and powerful circles. A government might, then, want to hide proof of an asteroid strike not to divert the attention of the public, but rather to divert the attention of other governments and countries. As is explored in “Don’t look Up”, what happens if the approaching asteroid is found to be valuable? Perhaps one group would rather keep it to themselves, to try to figure out a way to either get to it first or else survive it, so that they (and only they) can reap the financial rewards afterwards.

While asteroids may be a constant concern to those who worry that one day death will crash down upon them from above, even the vague prospect of a large one actually reaching Earth intact is a rare occurrence. So, any opportunity to “own” that asteroid may well be taken with both hands by a government that’s greedy enough. Or, at least, that’s the general line of thinking with some conspiracy claims. Another is that governments perhaps wouldn’t let on if a catastrophe was about to unfold because they themselves should be fine even if the worst did happen. What with all the emergency bunkers and underground (or mountainside) complexes that they reportedly have to flee to, the suggestion is that the world’s most powerful people are fully prepared to ride out the storm. This, again, plays into the idea of a wholly self-interested few presiding over an otherwise helpless majority. But is the world really like that? Could governments really be that self-involved, over and over again, no matter who leads them at any given time? Again, let us know your thoughts!

One thing’s for sure, if the government did want to hide proof of an asteroid strike, they’d have an incredibly hard job to do so. Consider how far-reaching the field of astronomy and the study of space is nowadays. Skip back just a couple generations, and the stars, moons and planets were almost universally unknown if you weren’t a high-ranking, high-profile, and highly intelligent academic or scientist. But now, the knowledge is widespread, amateur stargazing contributes so much to our overall records of space, and times have certainly changed. Perhaps covering up an incoming asteroid would be truly impossible in the modern world, then, no matter what the reason for doing so might be. Government backed groups are still more likely to make the first discovery, yes… but if it’s in the sky and heading straight for us then chances are that someone else will pick it up, too. Whether or not the world would believe that “someone else” until they had wider support is, perhaps, another matter.

Which leads to today’s final, all-too-often alleged reason why a government might choose to hold back the truth when it comes to asteroids… because would their people believe even them? Or, if the evidence for the asteroid was entirely undeniable, would their people continue to see them as the right group to lead them through the coming problems? If nothing else, an approaching rock from space would represent a major political minefield. Literally never before, in the whole of recorded human history, will any government have dealt with similar circumstances. And that, according to some conspiracists, could be enough to keep it under wraps. The end of the world is nigh… so what are you gonna do about it? That (or words to that effect) would be the question on the lips of every human being. And could any government really front an answer?

Of course, so much about this scenario would depend on the technology that’s at our disposal. And, here, there is reason to be cheerful. In late 2021, NASA launched the Double Asteroid Redirection Test, otherwise known as DART. It represents a breakthrough moment in planetary defense, as our scientists and engineers look to prepare our world for anything that could threaten it from afar. If all goes to plan, we’ll find out if DART works in late September 2022, when it smashes into a far-off piece of rock, and hopefully changes its route through space. Of course, the world has been officially assured that the target for DART isn’t on course to strike Earth. There is currently no asteroid heading our way, and this isn’t a last-ditch attempt to save us all… but, rather, it’s a test-run of the kinds of tech that we could potentially use in that future situation.

Thankfully, we’re not there yet. And let’s hope that if the time does ever arrive, then we’ll all be told well enough in advance to at least try to make the most of our last days before impact. But, nevertheless, that’s why the government might want to hide proof of an asteroid strike.