[TML] Asteroid Deflection

[Rob Davenport]

On Tue, 15 Jul 2008, shadow at shadowgard.com wrote:

> On 14 Jul 2008 at 12:55, Rob Davenport wrote:
>
>> 1)  What about jump drives (in the far future obviously)? Could one or
>> more be attached to an incoming rock (a non-near-C type rock probably) and
>> just jump it (or as much of it as possible) somewhere else? Never mind
>> about a misjump, in fact that'd probably be preferred. (Induced misjump?).
>
> "Civilized" systems will have done a sky survey and know where
> potential problems are *years* before they get close. And on that
> scale, a fewq nukes exploded near the proper side of the rock will
> cause it to eject enough mass (the x-rays from the nuke get absorbed
> mostly a ways *under the surface, causing the surface materials to
> get blasted out at a ffair speed). And the ejected mass wikll change
> the orbit.


Alan spake:
>Maybe a tug could just push/pull it into a new orbit? Save all the
>destruction and scattering of debris.


Yeah, I was thinking in civilized systems, these dangerous rocks (not 
near-C ones!) would be known years in advance and dealt with easily -
probably like Alan said by just pushing it with a tug or maneuver drive
(heck, if it's a comet, fit it with an M-drive, power plant, processing
equipment and a computer and let it drive itself to a new orbit).

It's the frontier systems that I was wondering about - if they didn't have
a good survey and a rock appeared on a collision course with "little time" 
(i.e. months) - would they perhaps want to 'hire' a band of travellers 
with a ship to jump it away.  But that's probably not as feasible like was 
said - the jump field isn't big enough.

But they might hire a ship to push the body into a new orbit.  Not as 
dramatic as I was thinking it might be, but might be useful.

Rob

-- 
"You perceive it as 'nutty' because you are thinking from the real world"
parker_rob chastises Ron Schwarz