4 ms·
Seems like maybe our ability to find and divert these asteroids might make all that burning of energy worth it, no?
by progrus 3y ago
Seems like maybe our ability to find and divert these asteroids might make all that burning of energy worth it, no?
- Capricorn2481 3y agoNot really, since there are only a few known instances of asteroids hitting earth in hundreds of millions of years, but climate change is an immediate threat within the next 50. The odds we live to see an asteroid hit us are slim.
- progrus 3y ago[flagged]
- Cthulhu_ 3y agoSlim, but not zero; we can and probably should do both.
- slibhb 3y ago> The odds we live to see an asteroid hit us are slim. Presumably this is based on a belief that humans are likely to go extinct. I don't agree; I think we're extremely unlikely to go extinct and, following from this, an impact is definitely something worth worrying about. It doesn't even have to be a "planet-killer," a smallish impactor could wipe out a city.
- suby 3y agoThe question is really how likely are we to be hit within the relevant time period. Had we taken a slower growth curve, we'd avoid climate change at the cost of an extra 50 or 100 years before being able to divert asteroids. That seems like a good bet. I am much more worried about climate change and irreversible destruction of ecosystems than getting hit with an asteroid in a very limited time period
- CoastalCoder 3y agoWell, maybe. It really comes down to the specific numbers. (At least for the objective part of the consideration.)
- thelittleone 3y agoHow realistic it to divert an asteroid of this size?
- dylan604 3y agowhen did we learn it was heading our way, and how far away is it at detection? hours, days, months, years before impact? that's key things to know.
- sebzim4500 3y agoIf you know find out years in advance then you barely have to change it's velocity to make it miss Earth. Probably a kinetic impactor would be sufficient, otherwise thermonuclear warheads exist.
- SkyPuncher 3y agoIt doesn't necessarily need to be diverted entirely. Simply breaking it up into smaller components significantly reduces it's impact force. Smaller pieces burn up more readily in the atmosphere and create smaller impacts (I believe exponentially smaller)
- HeyLaughingBoy 3y agoNow you're begging the question of how hard it is to break it up!
- thfuran 3y agoSignificantly harder than diverting it slightly.
- gremlinsinc 3y agosome of these asteroids we only have days warning. that's the scary part. To divert an asteroid you need to do it before it comes near so it has a long path to begin drifting in a new direction. ie it's only gonna nudge it slightly. Slightly adds up over many millions of miles, not so much when its a week out.