Near miss necessitates rejuvenation of NASA
Space is briefly a hot topic again after Earth’s brush with our most recent celestial tourist of note, the asteroid ominously named 2012 DA14. In case you didn’t know, 2012 DA14 breezed past the earth at a distance far closer than we’re comfortable with: 17,100 miles. While that may seem worlds away, it’s actually within Earth’s artificial satellite field, meaning the asteroid could have knocked out a few communication and weather satellites.
It’s a healthy asteroid too, coming in at a solid 190,000 metric tons. To put it in perspective, it’s roughly the size of a five-story office building. While it’s laughable compared to the size of Earth, which seems to be a knee-jerk comparison by some, scientists estimate that 2012 DA14 would have left a crater the size of Monaco after delivering a blast 1,000 times more powerful than the atom bomb detonated over Hiroshima did. We dodged this one, though the day will inevitably come when the movie “Armageddon” becomes reality.
“Asteroids are nature’s way of asking: How’s that space program coming along?” astrophysicist, spokesperson and pop culture icon Neil deGrasse Tyson said, and it rings all too true with this weekend’s buzz. It may be easy to dismiss our encounter with 2012 DA14 as an ultimately benign happening, but let’s not forget that a meteorite estimated to be within 16 to 33 feet in diameter recently exploded over central Russia, shattering windows with its blast and injuring more than 1,000 people. That meteorite was relatively pint-sized, but what are we going to do when a more formidable meteorite or asteroid is on a collision course with Earth?
Unfortunately for the drama enthusiasts among us, asteroids cannot actually be blown up in order to save the Earth like they are in the movies. Rather, they must be nudged ever so slightly to change their trajectory. Right now, we have no reliable or calculated means of doing that.
Fortunately, there is a level of preparation in the works, though it’s slight. NASA has plans of a future mission aptly named Dart, where they aim to fire a probe at an asteroid to see if it can be moved. It’s not much, but it’s a step in the right direction.
Hopefully Friday’s encounter reminded some skeptics of the necessity of a space program. Although our country isn’t in a position to be doling out money, preparing ourselves from a literally earth-shattering cataclysm might be necessary.
If saving the world isn’t motivation enough, and cash flow is, investing in a space program has historically reaped economic rewards with commercial products that found their start in the laboratory, such as cordless power tools and modern sneakers.
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