Planetary Defense Update

From: http://www.2002youngscientists.org/killer-asteroids-lessons-from-asteroid-tc3

Killer Asteroids – Lessons From Asteroid TC3
by admin

It seems like out of a science-fiction. A huge asteroid hurtles to Earth and threatens to destroy everything in its path. Well, in this case it was not a pulp novel, but a real asteroid heading for a direct collision with our planet. In this case, the asteroid in question “TC3″ does not strike the Earth’s surface to break, rather than in the atmosphere over Sudan on 7 October this year. The asteroid hit the atmosphere release energy equivalent to one kiloton bomb, quite an impressive sight when you pass the chance to see in the area. The rest of us can impact the online video clips, taken Clock earth orbiting satellites. It was followed closely by October 17, which is believed to concrete impacts in the vicinity of the remote community of Wallace Rock Hole west of Alice Springs in Australia in the NT. In such cases, residents reported the lights, the sound of an explosion and even feeling an earthquake. The Australian Government Department of Earth Sciences Geoscience Australia has confirmed that he was almost certainly a meteorite.

Although no one was hurt in these incidents, what would happen if an asteroid was much more important to strike the Earth’s surface? The damage could be devastating, especially if the asteroid to land in a populated area. As you can see, the asteroid / Earth collisions are a true true not only in science fiction, but it can and must be done. It is relatively rare that an asteroid large enough to make it through the Earth’s atmosphere without burning, it’s a certainty that it happen one day.

The prospect of a catastrophic event involving an asteroid collision with Earth not think any of us can at night, but the danger is real and the search is like the earth from such a disaster to protect performed. The chances of a collision with an asteroid or comet large enough in the near future are slim, but it supports only mention that according to the National Aeronautics and Space Association (NASA), there are currently almost a thousand different objects (two asteroids and comets) classified as a PHA (potentially hazardous asteroids).

The classification includes PHA objects, the very low probability that has already attracted striking the earth, but there are enough potential risks to the nearby planet called TC3 with Africa growing public interest in the topic of planetary defense. The first official conference on planetary defense took place last winter in Washington DC and served as a forum to discuss the astronomers, astrophysicists and other experts to approaches being explored in order to protect the earth, should a possible future asteroid impacts. Another conference (the first of the International Academy of Astronauts place) is to perform in the spring of 2009 and in a more extensive discussion of the issues, the planetary defense.

We already know that the impact can an event with an asteroid or comet have very devastating consequences. There were demonstrations spread to the whole of recorded human history, but you do not have more than 1908 search for the so-called Tunguska event. A large area near the Tunguska River, a remote region of Siberia, was largely beyond the air of a comet or asteroid flattened to disintegrate in the air over the area. True, the issue has never visited the area, but also the origin of this kind of devastation. Twenty years later, when Leonid Kulik Expedition photographed in the region, the damage was still clear – all the forests were flattened as if by a giant hand. And all of this is due probably caused by an object no larger 100-200 meters in diameter.

The need for a kind of planetary defense strategy is clear: if a relatively small and cause the destruction of the great in Tunguska, what would happen if something bigger object was for a collision with a densely populated position? Even a great Tunguska object would be enough to destroy most of a large metropolitan area. The result would be a tragedy may be unprecedented in human history.

During the development of a planetary defense system is still far from viable, probably many years, we now have the technology to monitor the sky, and well informed about all events of the impact. We know that the probability is low by any type of impact scale in the near future – we hope that humanity can not be complacent about the need to protect ourselves and protect our planet from those events. can help the great interest of the public at events like the recent collision taken by TC3 attention to the measures to be taken to protect against the risk of rare but devastating events asteroids and comets.

From: http://blogs.chron.com/sciguy/archives/2009/10/scenario_a_large_asteroid_will_strike_earth_in_thr.html