Jupiter Is The Solar System’s Asteroid Vacuum Cleaner

Jupiter receives a lot of guests because of its size and proximity to the Kuiper belt, a vast area of space beyond Neptune filled with asteroids and dwarf planets. Jupiter is thought to be hit by meteorites at least 200 times more frequently than Earth is. So, compliments to Jupiter for removing any possibly harmful asteroids that may have gotten dangerously close to Earth from the solar system.

The collision of SL9 highlighted Jupiter's function as the inner Solar System's "cosmic vacuum cleaner" (Jupiter barrier). The rate of cometary impacts on Jupiter is predicted to be between 2,000 and 8,000 times higher than the rate on Earth due to the planet's tremendous gravitational force, which causes many minor comets and asteroids to collide with the planet.

The Cretaceous-Paleogene impact event that produced the Chicxulub crater is generally believed to have been the reason for the extinction of the non-avian dinosaurs at the end of the Cretaceous period, proving that impacts pose a severe threat to life on Earth. According to astronomers' theories, extinction events might have been more frequent on Earth and sophisticated life may not have been able to evolve if Jupiter hadn't been there to catch any prospective impactors.

It was demonstrated in 2009 that the presence of a smaller planet at Jupiter's location in the Solar System may considerably increase the pace at which comets crash the Earth. A planet with Jupiter's mass still appears to offer more defense against asteroids, but it is unclear how this protection extends to all orbiting bodies in the Solar System. The nature of Jupiter's influence on Earth impacts is called into doubt by this model and other recent ones.