Many proposed anti-asteroid solutions involve knocking them off-course<\/a>, which carries its own problems — what if you create a fragment that hits Earth regardless? Researchers might have a safer solution. They’ve proposed<\/a> a system (spotted<\/a> by Parabolic Arc<\/em>) that would tether a threatening asteroid to a smaller rock, throwing off the larger body’s center of mass and steering it away from our homeworld. As the method only involves a giant cable, it wouldn’t risk cracking an object into pieces.<\/p>\n The scientists couldn’t test this in real life, of course, so they used a simulated version of Bennu<\/a> to see how well their idea would work. It’s viable for protecting the planet in a range of conditions, the team said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n There are catches. You need a small asteroid in the first place, of course. Moreover, this requires considerably more time to implement than smacking an asteroid with a spacecraft or projectile. It would work well with a coordinated detection and response system<\/a>, but might take too much time if observers are caught off-guard. It’s another tool in the arsenal, though, and it may be necessary when it’s likely just a matter of when an asteroid enters a collision course, not if.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/section>\n Tags:<\/b> Jon Fingas<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
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Jon Fingas<\/p>\n
<\/a>, Wire<\/a>, United States<\/a>, English<\/a><\/p>\n<\/div>\n
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Asteroid fragments wouldn’t be an issue. Many proposed anti-asteroid solutions involve knocking them off-course, which carries its own problems — what if you create a fragment that hits Earth regardless? Researchers might have a safer solution. They’ve proposed a system (spotted by Parabolic Arc) that would tether a threatening asteroid to a smaller rock, throwing off the larger body’s center … Continue reading Scientists propose tethering asteroids to prevent Earth impacts<\/span><\/a> Continue Reading
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