Asteroid 1999 AN10, Apophis and the GOG Hoax

The Asteroid That Won't Kill Us in 2027 (And the One Visible in 2029)

August 2027. An object roughly one kilometer wide will cross the sky at a distance similar to the Moon's, about 390,000 kilometers away. This is asteroid 1999 AN10, and its orbit has been measured with sufficient precision to rule out an impact. NASA hides nothing regarding this: the data is public. However, that date has fueled one of Spain's most profitable prophecies, the so-called GOG asteroid, which J. J. Benítez placed—champagne ready in case he was wrong—over the Caribbean.

The Navarrese writer has built much of his work on information he claims to have received, without astronomical observation or orbital calculations behind it. The champagne bottle to celebrate his own error is perhaps the most honest part of the matter. Because the specific date has merit: whoever bets on a set day and lives to tell the tale either retires or recycles the prophecy for the next one.

What Will Actually Happen in 2027 and 2029

On August 7, 2027, 1999 AN10 will pass at lunar distance. It will be visible through telescopes, not to the naked eye, and there is no risk of impact. The name "GOG" does not exist in any astronomical catalog: it is a literary label.

The main event arrives on April 13, 2029. Apophis will pass at approximately 32,000 kilometers, closer than some geostationary satellites. It will be visible to the naked eye from Europe on dark nights. In 2021, NASA ruled out impact risk for at least the next hundred years, and several missions will take advantage of the flyby to study it closely.

Confusion between these two bodies, mixed with all kinds of prophecies, turns routine astronomical data into conspiracy material. Some argue that spending on planetary defense reveals hidden knowledge. The evidence cited is DART, the 2022 mission where a spacecraft deliberately collided with a small asteroid to deflect its trajectory. A technology test, not an evacuation drill.

The Gravitational Effect You Can't Feel

There is a notion that a nearby asteroid should alter tides or leave a perceptible trace. With these distances and masses, the effect is negligible compared to the Moon's. The one-kilometer object at 390,000 kilometers exerts a minuscule attraction compared to our natural satellite.

Another line of thought links the issue to gamma-ray bursts, capable of stripping the atmosphere. These are real phenomena, but of distant stellar origin and unrelated to near-Earth asteroids. Mixing these planes allows any catastrophic headline to seem plausible.

Nostradamus, Prophecies, and the Business of Antiestéticar

The list of auguries is long. Nostradamus spoke of a celestial body visible during the day after an eclipse. More recent predictions describe global panic and lack of foresight due to cuts in space research. None provide coordinates, mass, or verifiable dates.

The pattern repeats: specific date, apocalyptic scenario, promise of updates. And a detail that confuses the most conspiratorial minds: agencies monitoring the sky publish their calculations. If there were something serious, it wouldn't need to be leaked.

With Apophis in sight in 2029, the question is no longer if something will fall, but how many books and videos will be published before that date.