Scientists believe that an asteroid that struck Earth millions of years ago wiped out the dinosaurs. Although asteroids hitting Earth again is unlikely to happen soon, scientists are already preparing for the future where the planet might be in danger and cause the extinction of all life forms on the planet.
One planetary defense scientist who has been working on a pulverizing system that will completely destroy space rocks said that humanity's only hope of avoiding a similar doomsday event as the dinosaurs could be in pulverizing asteroids. So, how does this system works?
Pulverizing Asteroids Could Be Humanity's Only Chance to Survive an Incoming Space Rock on Short Notice
What is PI-Terminal Defense for Humanity
Planetary defense scientist Professor Philip Lubin from the University of California Santa Barbara is the man behind the system that could save humanity from the impacts of space rocks. He calls it the PI-Terminal Defense for Humanity, wherein PI stands for Pulverize It. This system includes a rocket containing many explosive rods that will approach incoming asteroids and smash them into tiny pieces.
Professor Philip Lubin is developing an idea called PI-(Pulverize It) Terminal Defense for Humanity. Hi thinks pulverizing an incoming impactor into tiny pieces is our best bet to protect ourselves from an asteroid on short notice. 1/ pic.twitter.com/FHPmkPcksb
— Erika (@ExploreCosmos_) March 2, 2022
The small rockets will rain down on Earth and are expected to completely burn up as it re-enters Earth's atmosphere, The Sun reported. This method might seem familiar, especially to those who have seen Netflix's recent doomsday movie "Don't Look Up" in which scientists detected a huge asteroid coming to Earth.
Professor Lubin previously presented this defense system during the 2021 Planetary Defense Conference, in which his idea caught the attention of NASA officials. The American space agency awarded him a Phase One award in the NASA Innovative Advanced Concepts (NIAC) program.
That means NASA will be supporting Professor Lubin's PI-Terminal Defense for Humanity system to smash asteroids before they hit the planet. NASA always keeps an eye on near-Earth objects that might harm the planet.
How Does This System Work?
Science Alert reported that the main idea of PI is to pulverize an asteroid into smaller pieces. Although NASA tested an asteroid deflector last month, this new system could be used on short notice when there is not enough time to send an asteroid deflector.
In Lubin's article for NIAC on February 19, 2022, he wrote that asteroids measuring approximately 33 ft (10 meters) in diameter could be pulverized in short intercept scenarios and allow Earth to act as a "beam dump" where fragments will burn up in the atmosphere.
The news outlet further reported that PI's idea is to design an asteroid impactor that is explosive and not only kinetic. It will be fitted with penetrating rods filled with explosives to pierce the asteroid. It will create explosions that will pulverize the bolide into smaller chunks.
Depending on the size of the bolide, the pieces could form a cloud of debris when it is detonated at a safe distance from Earth. Although some debris might strike the planet, it will eventually be destroyed through friction with the atmosphere. Lubin explains that the effectiveness of this system depends on the time to intercept and the size of the asteroid.
The PI System could orbit the Earth or be housed on a lunar base for rapid response on the order of less than a day if needed. He added that this approach represents a highly cost-effective, testable, and deployable system with a logical roadmap to avoid the similar doomsday event that killed the dinosaurs.
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