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Satellite Collision Debris May Hamper Space Launch
Matt_dk writes "The debris from a recent collision involving two communications satellites could pose a serious threat for future launches of spacecraft into a geostationary orbit, a Russian scientist said on Friday. Future launches will have to be adjusted with regard to the fact that the debris [from the collision] has spread over an 800-km area and will gather at a common orbit in 5-6 years."
Unfortunately, this is not Star Trek, where we can just point some magical energy beam at something and "vaporize" it, rendering it harmless. We have to deal with Real Physics here, especially energy constraints. How much energy does do you think it takes to boil a few hundred kilograms of iron? Do you think we have anything remotely like that which we could feasibly launch into orbit? What do you think happens when it inevitably cools?
The World Wide Web is dying. Soon, we shall have only the Internet.
Precisely. If this is a problem for geo launches, then the same likely applies to future interplanetary launches (Lunar missions, Mars landers, etc.) as well.
Of course, what we really need is a simple deflector shield to protect our ships . . .
Sharks can't fly, though, and they would have to be smart enough to aim taking into account the refractive index difference between the seawater and the air.
Maybe if we used flying fish with frickin' lasers strapped to their heads...