Japan just bombed an asteroid

originally posted by: Majic
In related news, the Asteroidians have just declared war on Japan.

Infamy, etc.

a reply to: Malak777

Last time Japan bombed something started a World War ………

Hope they don't piss off bunch of aliens

BANZAI !!!!!!

originally posted by: bobs_uruncle
a reply to: Malak777

I wonder if it was a good idea to whack a 1km asteroid that has a year of 474 days and sort of crosses our path?

It was more of a love pat. The idea was to stir up some dust from a very small explosion so they could capture the dust and return it to Earth. It's not like they nuked it into bite size pieces.

originally posted by: schuyler

originally posted by: bobs_uruncle
a reply to: Malak777

I wonder if it was a good idea to whack a 1km asteroid that has a year of 474 days and sort of crosses our path?

It was more of a love pat. The idea was to stir up some dust from a very small explosion so they could capture the dust and return it to Earth. It's not like they nuked it into bite size pieces.

I seem to remember it was a 2kg charge. I realize that the reaction would be extremely small considering the asteroid is around a km in diameter. However, small changes in trajectory over time might mean at some point every 474 days, its path has changed sufficiently to be captured by our gravity well. That could be problematic as a 1km object travelling in excess of 18000 mph would be capable of doing serious damage.

Cheers - Dave

originally posted by: bobs_uruncle

originally posted by: schuyler

originally posted by: bobs_uruncle
a reply to: Malak777

I wonder if it was a good idea to whack a 1km asteroid that has a year of 474 days and sort of crosses our path?

It was more of a love pat. The idea was to stir up some dust from a very small explosion so they could capture the dust and return it to Earth. It's not like they nuked it into bite size pieces.

I seem to remember it was a 2kg charge. I realize that the reaction would be extremely small considering the asteroid is around a km in diameter. However, small changes in trajectory over time might mean at some point every 474 days, its path has changed sufficiently to be captured by our gravity well. That could be problematic as a 1km object travelling in excess of 18000 mph would be capable of doing serious damage.

It was more like 9.5kg, but it's already done. So you can commence worrying that it knocked the asteroid into a collision with Earth--or not. I think that possibility is so remote that it isn't worth considering.

The debate is irrelevant if Japan or any other nation shoots propulsion bullets into the asteroid then steers it into Jupiter....non sequitur.

a reply to: bobs_uruncle

That could be problematic as a 1km object travelling in excess of 18000 mph would be capable of doing serious damage.

Yeah. That's a lot of inertia.

It would also be very difficult to change its orbit as the result of a small explosion on its surface.

originally posted by: Phage
a reply to: bobs_uruncle

That could be problematic as a 1km object travelling in excess of 18000 mph would be capable of doing serious damage.

Yeah. That's a lot of inertia.

It would also be very difficult to change its orbit as the result of a small explosion on its surface.

Duh uh?

a reply to: InTheLight

Care to calculate the resultant vector?

originally posted by: Phage
a reply to: InTheLight

Care to calculate the resultant vector?

Actually, I would love to but I am rusty, so not at this time, thank you. Just tell me.

originally posted by: Phage
a reply to: InTheLight

Care to calculate the resultant vector?

You would need to know the material, the size of the explosion and many other things but you can give it a try.

a reply to: InTheLight

Sorry, it's the weekend.

Cocktail napkin says, "no worries."

a reply to: SeaWorthy
Figure it's TNT. Go from there.

Start with the momentum of the asteroid though. There's a lot of it.

originally posted by: Phage
a reply to: InTheLight

Sorry, it's the weekend.

Cocktail napkin says, "no worries."

Yes, exactly, or I would have given you a real answer that you would believe. Cheers.

a reply to: SgtHamsandwich

Shakes head. Talk about the wrong stuff!

a reply to: Malak777

That few second clip of the landing on the asteroid is pretty crisp, finally somebody thought to do some color footage. Now I cant wait for the whole its cgi fake threads and stories. But its supposed to come back in 2020 with whatever debris it gathered, thats like a way long time from now.

But ya, we need to blow more stuff up in space, especially certain celestial bodies. As for an asteroid setting us all back to the dark ages? I mean that list is so long to the potential things which can do that, were would one even start. Besides even with nukes, it would not do much against something that would be really big, even if you could see it, and even if you could hit it.

And there still finding rogue planets and giant moon sized rocks out there, which may nor may not be out there, and will be argued for some time to come. If there missing something that size, well that says something.