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UHF1211 t1_j6ev1uu wrote

Reply to comment by HIMP_Dahak_172291 in Asteroids sudden flyby shows blind spot in planetary threat detection by coinfanking

This is true if close enough and it would need to be pretty close, space is big and that heat would dissipate rather quickly otherwise but still perhaps just enough to push it ever so slightly out of the way.

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HIMP_Dahak_172291 t1_j6evwqh wrote

Yeah, it would have to be very close. The energy dissipates exponentially with distance. The more surface area exposed to the blast the asteroid has the more energy would be transferred though, so for really big ones it might be more effective than the basic chemical thrusters we have now. Not saying alot of course. A dinosaur killer has enough mass its debatable if we currently have the tech to deflect one that would hit within a decade or two.

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