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ESA Plans Test of Asteroid Defense System

vinlud writes "It has been announced by Dutch television ESA has chosen the Don Quijote programme to investigate the possibilities of altering the collision course of asteroids heading for Earth. The program, selected among five other studies, contains two spacecraft: Hidalgo and Sancho. Hidalgo will impact an asteroid of approximately 500 m diameter at a relative speed of at least 10 km/s while Sancho will retreat to a safe distance to observe the impact. An animation of the mission sequence (6.49 Mb) can be downloaded from here."

16 of 305 comments (clear)

  1. That's NOT important by superpulpsicle · · Score: 5, Funny

    What's important is a very efficient backup of slashdot so I can still post in the case of a continent size meteor hitting earth.

    1. Re:That's NOT important by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

      Just in case there isn't a backup look on the bright side. All those people who post lame "in Soviet Russia" jokes will be blown to smitherines in the cataclysm.

    2. Re:That's NOT important by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

      Bah! In Soviet Russia, the cataclysm blows YOU to smitherines!

  2. lets all hope by Lawrence_Bird · · Score: 1, Funny

    they dont have to convert any units.. don't want them accidentally redirecting anything back this way!

  3. Hidalgo's ultimate goal... by sdo1 · · Score: 5, Funny
    Hidalgo will impact an asteroid of approximately 500 m diameter at a relative speed of at least 10 km/s...

    ... altering its trajectory into a orbit scheduled to collide with Earth in 2006 at which point the real test will begin.

    -S

    --
    --- What parts of "shall make no law", "shall not be infringed", and "shall not be violated" don't you understand?
  4. Another solution... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Funny

    ...is to send Ben Affleck and Bruce Willis to the asteroid. One could make an animation of this, but it might result in a god-awful, 2-hour-long mistake.

  5. Damn! by slimyrubber · · Score: 4, Funny

    Guess we are doomed to die by hunger, terrorism, violent climate shift, war or MPAA.
    I was really betting it would be an asteroid.

    --
    [ I can not bring myself to believe that if knowledge presents danger, the solution is ignorance ] -- Isaac Asimov
  6. Testing the Asteroid Defense system for yourself. by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 5, Funny

    Try it out here.

  7. I have only three words to say on this... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny

    Worst.... codenames.... ever!

  8. Yeah... by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 1, Funny
    Good luck getting first post when you're dead!

    Bet that'll slow ya down.

  9. This is the European space agency by panurge · · Score: 4, Funny

    They work in all SI units. So, no conversions. Perhaps that's why Ariane is reliable.

    --
    Panurge has posted for the last time. Thanks for the positive moderations.
  10. NEO a hazard? by pyrrhonist · · Score: 3, Funny
    From the project's web page:
    It has been acknowledged by the scientific community that NEO may represent a hazard to Earth.

    But Neo is The One!

    --
    Show me on the doll where his noodly appendage touched you.
  11. Re:Bull's eye! by DickBreath · · Score: 3, Funny

    I did NOT RTFA re: asteroid defense systems. So I am left puzzling over just what asteroids need to be defended from?

    --

    I'll see your senator, and I'll raise you two judges.
  12. Re:Bull's eye! by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 3, Funny

    onder if it's not too hard to make such a millions miles away 'bull's eye'. 500 m in diameter is pretty small at this distance.

    It's not impossible. I used to bullseye womprats with my T-16 back home. They're not much bigger than 500 meters.

  13. Re:why democracy is such a bad idea by Anonymous Coward · · Score: 2, Funny

    If we follow the advice of people like the above poster the human race would still be stuck up a tree worried about the dangers of the forest floor. Luckily we didn't and some of the monkeys got eaten but others survived and thrived.

    I thought coming down the trees was widly regarded as a bad move. Me? I think we should never have gotten out of the water in the first place. I say, stop with all that so called "progress" already?

  14. Re:LIES about space weapons by Doc+Ruby · · Score: 2, Funny

    How about this dysfunctional moderation:

    Starting Score: 1 point
    Moderation 0
    50% Overrated
    50% Underrated
    Karma-Bonus Modifier +1 (Edit)
    Total Score: 2

    --

    --
    make install -not war