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"Asteroid busters" search for earthbound objects |
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Written by asap
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Saturday, 19 August 2006 |
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PRAGUE, Czech Republic — Astronomers set up a special task force Thursday as part of a global effort to search the skies for asteroids and comets on a potential collision course with the planet.
Sounds a bit far-fetched, but consider this: In 1908, a small asteroid struck remote central Siberia and unleashed as much energy as a 15-megaton nuclear bomb. It wiped out 60 million trees, rather than people, but if it had struck a populated area it would’ve been a horrific loss of life.
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SPACE THREATS
Experts say there are about 1,100 objects in the inner solar system that are at least a half-mile across. Any one of them could unleash a global cataclysm capable of killing millions in a single blinding flash.
“The goal is to discover these killer asteroids before they discover us,” said Nick Kaiser of the University of Hawaii’s Institute for Astronomy. The institute hopes to train four powerful digital cameras on the heavens to watch for would-be intruders.
Scientists believe that one day a defense could be devised to protect the planet, perhaps using spacecraft to divert a killer comet.
NASA ALSO WORKING ON IT
Congress also has asked NASA for a plan to comb the cosmos for even smaller, more distant objects -- including asteroids just 1 1/2 football fields across. The space agency is to catalog their position, speed and course by 2020. There already are 103 objects on an “impact risk” watch list.
Scientists warn there are as many as 100,000 of these “smaller” heavenly bodies with the potential to take out entire cities or set off a killer tsunami.
“Right now, unfortunately, there are no ’asteroid busters’ or hot lines. Who ya gonna call?” said Andrea Milani Comparetti, a professor of mathematics at Italy’s University of Pisa. | Only registered users can write comments.
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