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Neo-Tugboats: The No-Nukes Option?
Moffett Field (SPX) Oct 01, 2004 I have just returned from Erice, Italy, which lies on a mountaintop at the northwest corner of Sicily. Erice is a major center for the World Federation of Scientists. From 18-26 August the attendees participated in the International Seminars on Planetary Emergencies and Associated Meetings. I am writing this letter in order to pass on to those professionally involved in the subject of near-Earth objects (NEO), information developed at the seminars which I believe to be of particular interest. The comments below primarily represent my personal concern that with respect to asteroid characterization there is, in the community of NEO researchers, a de facto assumption regarding asteroid deflection methodology which may limit the future availability of critical design information. Much of the work reported dealt with very creative initiatives directed to the characterization of near-Earth asteroids (NEAs). From current missions underway to others awaiting critical funding, to future proposals, a wealth of knowledge will soon be produced regarding the structural characteristics of these bodies. Most of this work will characterize the seismic integrity and large scale structural character of NEAs. While we will certainly gain some knowledge of the fine scale structure I felt that attention to this aspect of asteroid characteristics was under addressed. My concern reflects, of course, my own preference for the B612 "gentle push" methodology for asteroid deflection. But this concern in fact applies to virtually all of the "soft" deflection techniques, e.g., mirror deflection, laser deflection, and the direct push recommended by B612. What I fear there is that, within the community of researchers, there exists a de facto, and perhaps sub-conscious acceptance that the "default" method for future asteroid deflection will be via the use of nuclear explosives. My sense is that, while the current asteroid characterization work is both valuable and unquestionably needed, it comes up short of the detailed surface information needed by the "soft" deflection concepts. For example, the single most critical unknown currently facing the B612 design is how to anchor a spacecraft to the asteroid surface after landing. In particular, in order to properly deflect an asteroid we must be able to push on it, not only perpendicular to the surface, but at angles down to, and hopefully including, the local horizontal. The question then is what is the nature of the regolith? What is its cohesion? Can one anchor to it and expect that a force of several newtons parallel to the surface can be reliably applied? For the ablation techniques which count on vaporization of the surface materials the detailed thermal characteristics (and probably chemical composition) will have to be known. While all of the current characterization work is truly commendable, I believe it is extremely important that future characterization research be broadened to include the detailed characteristics which will enable techniques other than the use of nuclear explosives or direct impact (which is of very limited effectiveness) to move ahead with valid I strongly urge that those doing this critical research become familiar with current thinking in the deflection field so that we are not left in the future with the terrible situation where the only deflection technology for which adequate design information exists is nuclear explosions in space. We should never be placed, by a lack of accessible knowledge, into a position of having to accept the Faustian bargain of nuclear weapons standing by forever in order to assure that the world can avoid a NEO impact. Community Email This Article Comment On This Article Related Links Toutatis Orbit Simulation
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College Park MD (SPX) Sep 07, 2005Painting by the numbers is a good description of how scientists create pictures of everything from atoms in our bodies to asteroids and comets in our solar system. Researchers involved in NASA's Deep Impact mission have been doing this kind of work since the mission's July 4th collision with comet Tempel 1. |
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