Sumwan_In_Particular t1_j6hes89 wrote on January 30, 2023 at 9:58 AM

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

That’s an interesting idea about the robot. I’m wondering what others think about using:

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bunker_buster

There’s a section for nuclear, an adaptation of which, might be a realistic approach delivering a nuke deeper into an asteroid. Or a train of them, hitting the same point.

Edit: I love that you mentioned rubble asteroids btw, bc we might have a better chance at rendering those (relatively) safe. I’d be most concerned if the asteroid was a large chunk of iron perhaps. I doubt the bunker buster would have nearly the intended effect.

HIMP_Dahak_172291 t1_j6hpgfi wrote on January 30, 2023 at 12:17 PM

From what I have read the rubble asteroids are the hardest to do something about. We can redirect a lump of iron provided we have enough warning, but rubble asteroids are much trickier since you cant just push them out of the way. The only two options are gravity tractor or demolition. Neither option is easy and both require lots more advanced warning compared to a similar mass solid asteroid.

Bunker busters wouldnt be particularly useful since the warhead wouldnt survive the impact at the speeds necessary to get sufficient penetration on a rubble asteroid big enough to need redirection. The drone idea is harder, but if you can get several deep enough with big enough bombs the blast should at least nudge the thing off course.