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Asteroid deflection technologies

Asteroid deflection technologies are methods and strategies developed to prevent potential impacts of asteroids with Earth. These technologies aim to alter the trajectory of an asteroid to ensure it does not collide with our planet Following the success of NASA's DART (Double Asteroid Redirection Test) mission, discussions about planetary defense and asteroid deflection strategies are increasingly prominent. Here are some principal methods and how they work: 1. Kinetic Impactor:    - How It Works: This method involves sending a spacecraft to collide with an asteroid at high speed. The impact changes the asteroid's velocity and trajectory, ideally enough to avoid a collision with Earth.    - Example: NASA's DART (Double Asteroid Redirection Test) mission successfully demonstrated this technique by impacting the moonlet Dimorphos in 2022. 2. Gravity Tractor:    - How It Works: A spacecraft positioned near an asteroid uses its gravitational pull to...

Scientist anticipated "snowman" asteroid appearance

On Jan. 2, the New Horizons spacecraft made the most distant flyby ever attempted, successfully returning images of the Kuiper Belt object Ultima Thule. While the world is agog at the so-called "snowman" shape of this icy asteroid, the concept is nothing new to PSI scientist and artist, Bill Hartmann. The figure shows paintings that Hartmann made from 1978 to 1996, to illustrate the possible outcome of very low-velocity collisions of distant asteroids. These are compared with the first released color image of Ultima Thule. The story goes back 50 years.

from Space Exploration News - Space News, Space Exploration, Space Science, Earth Sciences http://bit.ly/2sqHxkO

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