Apophis

[uh-poh-fis]

noun

Egyptian Mythology.

1. a demon serpent of darkness whom Ra, as sun god, destroys every morning at dawn.

Word History and Origins

Origin of Apophis¹

< Greek Ápophis < Egyptian; Apepi

Example Sentences

The ESA also has a joint proposal with Japan to send a spacecraft called Ramses to study the asteroid Apophis as it zings past Earth in 2029, hoping to learn more about how to fend off dangerous space rocks in the future.

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The most serious near-miss, and the closest comparison with YR4, was an asteroid called Apophis which was first spotted in 2004 and measured 375 meters across, or around the size of a cruise ship.

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But since Apophis, there have been huge advances in what is called planetary defence.

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Yes, astronomers point to asteroid 99942 Apophis, 1,099 feet wide and first identified in 2004.

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During early assessments of impact risk, Apophis reached a rating of Torino Scale 4, which is a scale for categorizing potential Earth impact events.

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