That’s one way to protect Earth, but a team from the University of California is suggesting another, more violent way. Theirto planetary defense is to pulverize the incoming asteroid and rely on Earth’s atmosphere as a shield from the resulting fragments.
Their concept is to use an array of small, hypervelocity kinetic penetrators to break up an asteroid into smaller fragments, which would burn up when entering Earth’s atmosphere due to extreme heat and pressure. “Phase II of this project involves greatly expanding upon the above simulation efforts, as well as an exploration of key steps on the roadmap towards an operational planetary defense system,” NASA wrote.
“These new awards showcase the breadth of how NIAC-supported concepts can change exploration,” Jim Reuter, associate administrator for NASA’s Space Technology Mission Directorate, said in a statement. “From revolutionary propulsion systems for deep-space missions to advances in aviation to change how we travel here on Earth, these technologies would radically expand our capabilities in air and space.