Chinese scientists have come up with a novel approach to planetary defence that they say may be the ultimate way to fend off the threat of a potentially devastating asteroid that could hit the Earth.
For a long time, asteroids have been considered one of the biggest natural dangers to life on Earth, and there have been numerous impacts of such objects which have been associated with mass extinctions and environmental devastation.
Within the past few years, astronomers have been able to discover several near-Earth asteroids between a few dozen and hundreds of metres in diameter, and these are just a few examples, suggesting that there is a need for effective methods of protection.
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The best way to deflect or destroy a large asteroid is still through a nuclear detonation, according to China Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology researchers, who pointed out that this solution works best if there’s not much warning time before a potential impact.
Their study is published in the journal, Space: Science & Technology.
The proposed method does not involve a gradual change in the orbit of the asteroid, as in previous attempts, but instead, a spacecraft with a penetration device is sent.
It would bore or dig a deep hole in the asteroid, and then it would place a nuclear weapon under the surface and detonate.
Researchers believe it would be much more effective than a surface explosion because it would transfer more energy to the asteroid from the underground explosion.
One of the largest obstacles to planetary defence is the prediction of the reaction of an asteroid to a nuclear explosion, and that is where the team developed computer simulations to evaluate the technique.
The researchers say a 200 Hiroshima-type bomb would destroy a 100-metre-wide asteroid.
The researchers say that a detonation of a nuclear device within a 20-metre deep hole in such a much bigger asteroid (around 1-km diameter) could alter asteroid’s track sufficiently to redirect it away from Earth.
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