Detonating a nuclear bomb on top of an incoming piece of space rock could be our best hope of avoiding a catastrophic impact.
Detonating a nuclear bomb on top of an incoming asteroid could be our best hope of avoiding a catastrophic impact. A laboratory experiment conducted by an international team of researchers confirmed that emitted X-rays of suitable size could deflect asteroids by about 3-5 kilometers wide from their trajectory.
The risks associated with a nuclear impact on an asteroid
While there is no evidence of an urgent need for such a device, the consequences of being hit by surprise by a dangerous near-Earth asteroid are not trivial. This makes it essential to develop an action plan that saves our skin. NASA recently demonstrated that if a probe hit a relatively small pile of rock with enough force, it could actually avoid the rock .
The DART mission
With a diameter of just under 800 meters and made up of loose gravel and boulders, the smallest member of the binary system has changed its orbit to the point of convincing astrophysicists that this technique can help us disintegrate space rocks dangerous for our planet. As promising as the results are, it’s also clear that we need a lot more data before we can throw chunks of metal at any old asteroid in the hope that it will avert disaster. A larger, solid rock might be a different story.
Science’s approaches to a potentially dangerous asteroid
Fortunately, there is more than one way to repel an Earth-threatening asteroid. For example, it might work to use a powerful motor, or use a focused laser to create a rocket effect the ablation of the asteroid’s surface. Among the most feasible approaches, heating a small portion of an asteroid’s surface with an intense glow of radiation could also vaporize its minerals to the point that the outgoing gases could push the mass enough to change its path.
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