obliterate, asteroid, catastrophe, dinosaurs

NASA Launches New Mission: Crash Into Asteroid, Defend Planet Earth

The Double Asteroid Redirection Test spacecraft could be the first to alter an asteroid’s path, a technique that may help defend the planet in the future.

Maybe an Asteroid Didn't Kill the Dinosaurs

By Jeffrey Kluger

A new survey of the geologic and fossil records of Mexico suggests that the asteroid was framed for the death of dinos

Stating that the country faces a "profound economic emergency," Obama warned that failing to do anything "could turn a crisis into a catastrophe."

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	"Elaine Scarry points out in her moving book The Body in Pain that the power of pain (as in torture) is that it obliterates our connection with the personal ... "

2002's News, Yesterday's Sell-Off A six-year-old article mistakenly seen by Bloomberg financial news users yesterday reported the bankruptcy of United Airlines and triggered a massive sell-off that nearly obliterated the company's stock in a matter of minutes. (By Frank Ahrens, The Washington Post) German Scientists to Hunt Dangerous Asteroids There are believed to be more than 1,000 asteroids that could slam into the earth and obliterate a city or even a small country. German scientists will develop a satellite to track them in time to prevent catastrophy( sic). The DW-WORLD Article http://newsletter.dw-world.de/re?l=evyu6oI44va89pI4

dinosaur 恐龍 ob・lit・er・ate

━━ vt. 消す, 抹殺する; 痕跡をなくする. ob・lit・er・a・tion　━━ n.

obliterate  verb 1 [T often passive] to remove all sign of something, either by destroying it or by covering it so that it cannot be seen: The missile strike was devastating - the target was totally obliterated. All of a sudden the view was obliterated by the fog. 2 [T] to make an idea or feeling disappear completely: Perhaps she gets drunk to obliterate painful memories. 

  asteroid  noun [C] one of many rocky objects, varying in width from over 900 kilometres to less than one kilometre, which circle the sun

catastrophe 

 noun [C] 1 a sudden event that causes very great trouble or destruction: They were warned of the ecological catastrophe to come. 2 a bad situation: The emigration of scientists is a catastrophe for the country.

catastrophic  adjective An unchecked increase in the use of fossil fuels could have catastrophic results for the planet.