Nasa will be unable to defend our planet against a doomsday asteroid that could smash into Earth in 2135, a chilling study has revealed.
Researchers found that it might be impossible to stop the space rock – which is the size of the Empire State building – from careering into Earth next century.
Scientists revealed that even their most advanced technology would prove ‘inadequate’ for deflecting such a space rock, which has been dubbed Bennu.
The consequences would be ‘dire’ experts have warned, and the asteroid has sparked fears that it could even wipe out life for good.
Scientists are investigating the possibility of using a specially designed spacecraft to nuke approaching cosmic objects in hopes that this would deflect the threat.
While it could be possible to divert a near-Earth object (NEO) by slamming into it with a so-called impactor, experts say a nuclear explosion may be the best bet when time is running out.
In a new paper, scientists from NASA and the National Nuclear Security Administration have laid out a plan for the Hypervelocity Asteroid Mitigation Mission for Emergency Response (HAMMER).
According to BuzzFeed News, the 8.8-ton HAMMER spacecraft could steer itself directly into a small asteroid or use a nuclear device to blow the space rock up.
The team has proposed a potential impact on the 1,600-foot-wide asteroid Bennu, which is currently the destination for NASA’s Osiris-Rex sample return mission.
While Earth isn’t at risk of a collision with Bennu any time soon, there’s a 1 in 2,700 chance it will slam into our planet sometime next century.
The researchers note that Bennu is also the best-studied asteroid of all the known NEOs.
‘The two realistic responses considered are the use of a spacecraft functioning as either a kinetic impactor or a nuclear explosive carrier to deflect the approaching NEO,’ the authors wrote in the study, published to the journal Acta Astronautica.
However, several factors determine the best approach.
The asteroid’s size and mass must be considered, along with the amount of time available before it hits Earth. Plus, there are always ‘various uncertainties.’
