Universe Sandbox

General Category => Everything Else => Topic started by: atomic7732 on August 26, 2009, 05:44:40 PM

Title: Near-Earth Asteroid Threats
Post by: atomic7732 on August 26, 2009, 05:44:40 PM

http://neo.jpl.nasa.gov/risk/

2007 VK184 (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/2007_VK184)

Impact Probablility: 3.4×10^-4 (http://neo.jpl.nasa.gov/cgi-bin/ip?3.4e-04)

Diameter: .13 km

Torino Scale: 1

4 Probable impacts between 2048 and 2057

Title: Re: Near-Earth Asteroid Threats
Post by: hbmp88 on August 26, 2009, 06:02:13 PM

Couldn't we just nuke them?

Title: Re: Near-Earth Asteroid Threats
Post by: atomic7732 on August 26, 2009, 06:21:02 PM

No, then if it fails we have a radioactive meteor storm coming at us.

The best way is the sails. Or blow up bombs near it. Or just put a spacecraft near it, and the slight gravity, will change it's stojectory to miss us.

Title: Re: Near-Earth Asteroid Threats
Post by: hbmp88 on August 26, 2009, 06:25:51 PM

Then use regular bombs or if we have the technology then antimatter bombs.

Title: Re: Near-Earth Asteroid Threats
Post by: atomic7732 on August 26, 2009, 06:26:16 PM

Bombs near it.

Title: Re: Near-Earth Asteroid Threats
Post by: Dan Dixon on August 26, 2009, 07:20:32 PM

Quote from: hbmp88 on August 26, 2009, 06:02:13 PM

Couldn't we just nuke them?

The other problem is that if you blow up an incoming asteroid, then instead of a single body hitting the Earth you have hundreds of smaller bodies hitting the Earth.

Try this in Universe Sandbox...
- Open up Earth & Moon
- Select "Asteroid" from the preset list under New Bodies
- Shoot an asteroid at the Earth
- Right click on the asteroid
- Set the explode value to 1 km/s (you may want to experiment with different values)
- and then click "Explode"

Title: Re: Near-Earth Asteroid Threats
Post by: Bla on August 26, 2009, 10:22:46 PM

Quote from: hbmp88 on August 26, 2009, 06:02:13 PM

Couldn't we just nuke them?

Quote from: Dan Dixon on August 26, 2009, 07:20:32 PM

The other problem is that if you blow up an incoming asteroid, then instead of a single body hitting the Earth you have hundreds of smaller bodies hitting the Earth.

Try this in Universe Sandbox...
- Open up Earth & Moon
- Select "Asteroid" from the preset list under New Bodies
- Shoot an asteroid at the Earth
- Right click on the asteroid
- Set the explode value to 1 km/s (you may want to experiment with different values)
- and then click "Explode"

But if we destroy it before it hits the atmosphere, won't the smaller pieces burn up when they enter the atmosphere?

Title: Re: Near-Earth Asteroid Threats
Post by: hbmp88 on August 27, 2009, 02:40:04 AM

I saw a movie I think called deep impact. It's about an asteroid coming to hit earth, they keep it secret til its about to hit then evacuate people underground. A spaceship drills bombs into the asteroid and explodes it but they become 2 pieces. One is destoyed by the spaceship because its full with nuclear bombs, the other hits earth. But the one destroyed ends up creating beautiful meteor showers after the first nearly kills everyone by causing a huge tsunami.