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For asteroids that can be detected with lots of time, yes, deflecting them with time is totally the way to go. As the discussion was with bolides, I assumed we
by dr_zoidberg 5y ago
For asteroids that can be detected with lots of time, yes, deflecting them with time is totally the way to go. As the discussion was with bolides, I assumed we were talking in an "impending danger, no time to act" framework.
- ClumsyPilot 5y agoIn this context 'Lost of time' means years in advance, so you can finetune it's orbit. 'Impeding danger' means weeks or days at a minimum, so you have to use a nuke. It would be near moon's orbit. If it's a bolide, it's in the atmosphere, moving faster than any missile. Its like trying to stop a bullet after it intered you epidemis - you already lost.
- dr_zoidberg 5y agoI understand that bolides would be the biggest danger right now, as they are small enough to be practically undetectable, but may be large enough to level a city. Are there any measures we can take against them? [0] [0] I'm aware one of our best bets here would be a proper survey and sensitive enough telescopes/satellites actively looking for these kind of objects. And that there are some projects and programs along these lines already. It'd seem there's some more work to be done in that area though.