Don't misunderstand me...I'd like to do all of these things. Chris has a point--if we're going to dink with an asteroid's trajectory, it would probably be best to do it with one coming nowhere near the Earth.
Actually shoving an asteroid into Earth-Moon space (at a safe distance, as you suggest) is another order of magnitude in propulsion requirements. We're talking serious delta-V in many cases, far beyond that required to nudge a collider so it misses us five or ten years later.
I believe that mass-drivers will be needed for that, using asteroid material as the propulsion mass. Either that or some serious fusion or "Orion" type propulsion. Obviously, I prefer the mass drivers, since it integrates nicely into the mining tech, no nuclear bombs needed, and much less chance of fracturing the asteroid.
Space/Science » in reply to re: miss the point
Asteroid towing
The whole thread (53 posts)
- Should humanity deflect the NEO asteroid, Apophis, prior to 2029, or should we leave it alone?
- The fragments of Comet Schwassmann Wachmann 3 will be in our neighborhood in 2022
- An Idea...
- All the posters on this thread miss the point
- There's a small chance of making things worse by a failed attempt.
- re: miss the point
- Don't deflect it. Tag it.
- Our estimate of where Apophis will pass in 2029 is highly inaccurate.