Averting Armageddon via asteroid -- by Douglas MacKinnon
NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory reported that on March 2, asteroid 2009 DD45 came within about 48,000 miles of Earth. In astronomical terms, that's way too close for comfort. And yet during President Barack Obama's most recent press conference, no reporter asked him about this just-missed catastrophe. The fact is, the world hardly noticed. Asteroid 2009 DD45 was estimated to be between 69 and 154 feet in diameter. An asteroid that size exploded over Siberia in 1908 and flattened more than 800 square miles of forest, killing everything in its path. Moreover, 2009 DD45 is considered to be the runt of the litter when it comes to the asteroid family - quite small in relation to the planet-killers screaming through our solar system undetected. The vast majority of politicians are loath to discuss this subject out of fear of being lumped in with the "flying saucer" people or being considered eccentric by voters. I would argue that 2009 DD45 just proved that if they are not talking about most or all of life on Earth being ended by an asteroid, they are in dereliction of duty. But because of blind luck, the hand of God, or any explanation that helps you sleep better at night, we just avoided unimaginable destruction.
Make no mistake: We had no clue that 2009 DD45 was out there or that it was basically on a years-in-the-making possible collision course with our planet. None. While this close shave raises many questions, two immediate ones come to mind.First, as our elected officials throw billions of dollars around like they were dimes, do they think they need to invest a bit more money into asteroid detection and collision prevention? Such desperately needed money would be directed at NASA's Near Earth Object Program to first and foremost detect these potential planet-killers; later in the process, NASA would implement a plan that would entail flying (using robots or humans) to the asteroid to employ the most effective way to nudge it off its destructive course.
The second and maybe more pertinent question - for reasons including but not limited to an asteroid strike - is, does this latest cosmic scare dictate the need for the governments of the world to come together to formulate a plan to permanently get a representation of humankind off the planet and into the solar system as a way of preserving the species? Leaving aside destruction by an asteroid, human beings tend to be fairly fragile and don't react well to nuclear weapons, terrorism, natural disasters or unforeseen plagues. Isn't it time we covered our bets?
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