Can we really deflect a city-killing asteroid before it strikes our planet?
In short: Volcanologist Robin George Andrews explains how NASA's DART mission successfully altered an asteroid's orbit. This lecture explores the planetary defense movement and the engineering feats required to protect Earth from the thousands of undetected city-destroying objects in our near-Earth orbit.
Astronomers estimate that roughly 25,000 city-killing asteroids exist in near-Earth orbit, with the majority remaining undiscovered. These objects are small enough to escape detection while possessing the potential for massive destruction, making them a significant cosmic threat.
The DART mission, or Double Asteroid Redirection Test, demonstrated that humanity can actively defend against these threats by crashing a spacecraft into an asteroid to shift its trajectory. This successful test, recorded at the Royal Institution on February 1, 2025, highlights the collaborative efforts of international scientists and engineers to safeguard the planet.
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- Summary by Intellect · source: How to stop a killer asteroid from hitting Earth - with Robin George Andrews
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