The Comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 as imaged by the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope in 1994. NASA/ESA/Hubble
In 1994 the world witnessed something it had never seen before.
An unprecedented event occurred in the heavens…and for a brief time, it would hold our attention. It would certainly influence the science community for decades to come. But for mankind in general, this moment would soon fade from memory…until, in time, it would barely be remembered at all, especially by the church.
But it remains a critical moment in the timeline of End Time events, because in 1994, this generation was given a great sign, when the comet Shoemaker-Levy 9 collided with Jupiter from the 16th to the 22nd of July.
Video: Remembering Shoemaker-Levy 9
This impact with Jupiter represented the first time in history that mankind had the technology to observe and study a comet collide with a planetary body in our solar system in real time. In addition to earth based telescopes, the comet was watched by the Hubble Space Telescope, the ROSAT X-ray-observing satellite and the Galileo spacecraft which was already on its way to Jupiter, scheduled to orbit in December 1995.
The comet was named for astronomers Eugene and Carolyn Shoemaker, along with David Levy, and would be the ninth periodic comet discovered by this group; hence the name ‘Shoemaker-Levy 9’ (SL9). The SL9 comet approached Jupiter in a ‘string of pearls’ configuration of 21 segments and–as the world watched in awe—would hit the far side of Jupiter with astonishing effect.
The first impact occurred on July 16th 1994. Over the following week the 21 pieces would hit the planet day by day, with the largest occurring on July 18th. This fragment hit with a force 600 times greater than the world’s nuclear weapon arsenal. The ensuing scar left on Jupiter rivaled the size of the earth. The final collision came on July 22nd.
The long-term legacy of this event would be profound. It served as a stark warning just how at risk the planets remained to large collisions—and raised a lot of questions regarding the earth. One NASA scientist remarked that “Shoemaker-Levy 9 was a sort of punch in the gut.” As a result, in the wake of SL9, NASA initiated a program to begin cataloging large near-Earth objects – which is a project that continues to this day. This included developing options for diverting objects that put Earth at risk of impact; which would eventually lead to the formation of the ‘Planetary Defense Coordination Office’ (PDCO) in 2016. These efforts to monitor objects and explore defense options continue to this day, and serve as the legacy of SL9.
The scientific community regards the 1994 impact as a ground breaking moment…but as Christian believers we should also understand SL9 from a different perspective. Because this was potentially much more than just a random collision with Jupiter.
SL9 could very well have been a prophetic sign…and perhaps one of the most important prophetic signs given to this generation. Because this collision could be a foreshadowing and warning regarding the trumpet judgments of the Book of Revelation. Let’s turn to Revelation Chapter 8, verses 8 to 9, as the Apostle John describes the second of the Trumpet judgements:
Revelation 8:8-9: “Then the second angel sounded: And something like a great mountain burning with fire was thrown into the sea, and a third of the sea became blood. And a third of the living creatures in the sea died, and a third of the ships were destroyed.”
To many, the description provided by the Apostle John clearly depicts an asteroid or comet impacting the ocean, which results in the destruction of marine life as well as the ships at sea. In fact, the description of events in the verse preceding this passage could also be attributed to this same astronomical event. Turning to Revelation 8:7:
Revelation 8:7: “The first angel sounded: And hail and fire followed, mingled with blood, and they were thrown to the earth. And a third of the trees were burned up, and all green grass was burned up.”
Hail and fire falling to earth could certainly be a characteristic of the leading edge of an object as it begins to enter the atmosphere, as well as the appearance of blood red rain.
In 2001, a downpour of red rain fell over Kerala in southern India during a two-month period – to the point of even staining clothes pink. Analysis led to a suggestion that a comet may have disintegrated in the upper atmosphere and seeded the clouds, with locals even reporting a sonic boom. Note that other red rain events have also occurred, including Sri Lanka in 2012, that appeared in conjunction meteorites. In a May 2019 paper as part of ‘Advances in Astrophysics Vol 4’, researchers presented analysis of the red rains of Kerala and Sri Lanka, and concluded with this statement:
“In conclusion we note that these results support the view that the red rain cells of both Kerala (2001) and Sri Lanka (2012) may have an extraterrestrial origin with an ubiquitous presence throughout the universe.” (Kumar)
Regarding hail falling along with fire as stated in Revelation 8, we have already seen this demonstrated in Exodus 9 as part of the plagues of Egypt. If we turn to vulcanology, we can find a mechanism in which explosive debris results in hailstones. In the Icelandic volcanos of 2010 and 2011 it was documented that hailstones formed from ash that fell during the eruptions. In 1980, ice balls were seen hitting the ground 20 km from Mount St Helens during its eruption. And in a 2009 Alaskan eruption, frozen ash landed as hail up to 10 mm in size. Envisioning this same kind of mechanism at work with the atmospheric entry of asteroid or comet debris is probably not far-fetched.
So, it is possible that the descriptions of Revelation 8:7 could be attributed to an object from space breaking up in the atmosphere.
When the object hits the earth, we are also told that the sea turns the color of blood. We could imagine a variety of causes for this, ranging from the chemical makeup of the object itself to dead marine life or perhaps it is simply a runaway red tide event that is triggered in the wake of this impact. Given that we see red tide events in our day, perhaps this is the most likely cause.
And finally, just before this sequence of events, we see in the description of the sixth seal that mankind races into the mountains to hide in rocks and caves. This occurs after the great earthquake described in that passage. To me it seems likely that the world is reacting to something that it sees approaching from space, given that following mankind’s retreat into the mountains comes the account of the “great mountain burning with fire” that strikes the ocean in Revelation 8. So, it appears to me that the Apostle John was given a vision of an object entering our atmosphere and striking the earth.
The impact of SL9 with Jupiter in 1994 gave the world a front row seat to the devastation resulting from a planetary collision.
But if we look closely at the SL9 event, we will also find a great deal of symbolism that speaks to these last days…including the possibility that the 1994 collision triggered a forty-year cycle, similar to that of ancient Nineveh in the Bible.
Next – Chapter 15: Shoemaker-Levy 9 – A Prophetic Sign
