The Imaginary Future Asteroid That Hit NYC

Last week, an asteroid impact drill was conducted, which demonstrated what might happen if an asteroid hit us within the decade. It didn't go quite as well as we would like.
Host: Hank Green
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[@someoneonyoutube8622]

When your boss wants to start a TTRPG group but needs a reason to make it look official at work...

[@JJCreatorOfWorlds]

it's like D&D but with SCIENCE this is the official best thing ever

[@mistformsquirrel]

The asteroid rolls initiative ...

[@Jamie31166]

mistformsquirrel Nat 20

[@halomaster213]

Earth: we deflected you by using our rockets Asteroid: haha! You thought you have knocked me off course, but I play... MY ULTIMATE TRAP CARD, now I still can hit you and cause billions and trillions of damage. Earth: Na- na- Nani?!!? Asteroid: *insert evil laughing here*

[@unicornswag888]

Duty calls.

[@SujayRajJha]

Booty calls.

[@theblackboyjoe]

Sujay Raj biggie smalls

[@officer_baitlyn]

i like how their DnD session ended in the destruction of NY

[@Tfin]

Dagnabbit, that's gonna ruin the fall TV season. Not to mention all the displaced and newly unemployed people all over the area just outside strike zone.

[@azerdraco3146]

@@Tfin Quick fix ... Throw a huge political fundraising dinner in NY the day of the impact Have it televised and recorded ... After the impact, sell copies under the title "Fixing the Political Problem" As for the unemployed survivors ... utilize their useful skills and provide training so that all of them can have a hand in building a better NYC as soon as ground zero has cooled off enough.

[@lightdarkequivalent7143]

As it should

[@Morristown337]

Should have went with the nuke as kinetic pusher out of the way thingy. More specifically 6 Tzar bombs 50+Megaton hydogen bombs and make angled space mirrors that direct sunlight like a magnifying glass in the rocks direction as a back up.

[@azerdraco3146]

@@Morristown337 You are partially correct. The optimal solution would have been a way to "plant" the bombs on the surface of the object and then direct their explosive energy in a single direction. Think a breaching charge used on doors, but focused AWAY from the object rather than towards it. Utilizing a breaching charge style explosive detonation, the 6 "Tzar Bomba" size explosives would most likely be enough to impart a lateral force sufficient to change the trajectory into a miss if all 6 were tied to detonate at the same time and same direction. And yes, the mirror option would work, but would be much more efficient if coupled with a solar sail that anchors to the object itself. Mirrors reflect light into the sail, and add that energy into the energy already being utilized from solar wind.

[@SageManeja]

USA: WATCH OUT AN ASTEROID IS GONNA HIT DENVER Rest of the world: Who's Denver?

[@NachoTPAO]

I doubt that Russia would let pass this opportunity to watch the US get rekt and help like it says on the video. 300 meters is hardly world-threatning (Dino one was 10.000+). In fact carefully and secretly triying to deviate a previously safe 1KM or so (continental devastation) one to HIT the US is the most realistic/easiest way for taking it out...

[@orchdork775]

@@NachoTPAO I think Russia would use it as an opportunitity to negotiate power. If we want their help, then we have to provide them with something they want: economic and political control. Same with China. They could request that there be no taxes on imported goods from Russia and China, or that the U.S. hault all technology production and manufacturing for 25 years. They could even request complete economic and political control over us, basically taking over America completely.

[@EdricLysharae]

@@orchdork775, I agree up to a point: If the USA would need the industrial/military assets of other nations, we are already doomed. If the USA can't get it done, it is unlikely that it can be done.

[@EdricLysharae]

What would be more interesting scenarios would be the asteroid target being Pyongyang, Reykjavik, Buenos Aires, Johannesburg, or a Middle Eastern city, where these countries do not currently/independently have the technological and/or industrial resources to deal with the oncoming event. They would have no option but to rely on more developed nations to help them, and we should help them, because we're all human beings, no matter our birth circumstances. 🌈

[@PaStef37]

We know about Denver way abroad. But all we really need to know is that we are far enough from it :-)

[@shreddyfans]

Um... Astrophysicists had a savage game master it seems like... Weird conference...

[@iambiggus]

Lord Mormagor I once had a GM spawn in a dragon about ten minutes into our adventure. It was his first time gm’ing, and of course we all died. This reminds me of that hehe.

[@MorbidEel]

This is literally a "rocks fall, everyone dies" scenario. XD

[@SudoBurger]

"Good news! You all saved Denver, guys!" "Alright, awesome!" :D "BUT OH NO! A chunk broke off that's going straight to nuke Central Park in one of the most densely populated cities in the world!! Whatever will you do now??" "... Jim, you suck." >:(

[@tcayzer]

Can you imagine them all? What a ride listening to the story unraveling. Then it's like, oh, a lot of people are still gonna die.

[@TheKira699]

@@SudoBurger Interesting, just like the fictional disaster films, the US always gets nuked, or destroyed by natural disasters or asteroids.

[@Anonarchist]

*NASA:* "Let's try to save Denver from an asteroid impact!" *NYC:* "Ya'll donked up, for real..."

[@ahmedkareemramadhan6000]

Patrick: *push NYC to Denver*

[@FlyingJetpack1]

Did... Did they just play D&D, but with an astroid simulation?

[@Myname-il9vd]

No because they actually did something with computers from what I've seen and experienced d&d is throwing dice and...talking

[@derrickthewhite1]

@@Myname-il9vd There is no way that Denver and NYC were randomly picked as target locations. These were planned. Not necessarily for dramatic effect, but as intentional worst case scenarios. Possibly they ran hundreds of simulations and picked the worst one. However to call role-playing of any sort "D&D" is to demean a useful tool, pigeon hole many hobbies, and exalt "D&D". Role-playing can be fun, but it is also a great learning tool and testing tool.

[@steevemartial4084]

It's really cool. I wish other existential risks were taken as seriously as asteroid impacts.

[@iamunamed5800]

Nuclear war is especially laughed at and any idea of preparedness is mocked. When literally just telling people evacuate if you're in 15 miles from ground zero and get away from windows and don't look at the flash would solve a vast majority of the initial injuries.

[@clarkkent6035]

Or you could ask me really nicely to push it out of the way.

[@MyPisceanNature]

What is a mild-mannered reporter going to do?

[@mihir2012]

Pshh, who needs you when we have muscle Hank!?

[@TheGhilamonster]

Who are you? I don't know about trusting you, maybe Superman though

[@gravityawsome]

Dungeons and dragons: Space edition

[@echalone]

That's why I don't like those "you can't nuke an Asteroid" statements. Yes, you shouldn't blow it up with a nuke, but detonating a nuclear device next to it can evaporate the surface, as mentioned, and it will also provide some radiation pressure. These two forces combined will work for nearly every type of Asteroid, it will work fast and it's relatively simple to implement. It's not perfect either, but it's a valid alternative.

[@neverthelessthesun1428]

It was super cool to hear a layman’s explanation of this event! I always love scishow but this one in particular was super interesting to me. Gj scishow team!

[@LolUGotBusted]

Asteroid impact drill? I saw one of those on eBay

[@horizonanadyomene]

damn thank goodness we did the drill early. can you imagine if we were trying to figure this out for the first time irl

[@cantbeleveitsnotnaru]

I absolutely love SciShow Tangents!!! I listen every Tuesday when it comes out.

[@Eltuine]

This seems like a potentially really interesting tabletop game system...

[@anevenbluerjay]

Hypothetical scenarios like these are SO COOL

[@TheExoplanetsChannel]

Just in case, let's find a *close habitable exoplanet*

[@Miranox2]

The closest one would be light-years away at the very least and we don't have the technology to get there. Earth is all we have.

[@kevinrdunnphs]

What? Thats not a rational solution to a few thousand tons of rocks leveling a city. It would take thousands of years for even probes to arrive if we found one just a dozen or so light years away, and would in the best case scenario take far more work to make like earth than it would to just slightly tweak our earth to end global warming. We can't even get rid of the extra 100 parts per million of CO2 in our atmosphere, we can't control the entirety of a planet many lifetimes of travel away. Even making Mars like earth would be a radical challenge compared to just fixing up the earth.

[@Tflexxx02]

It hits New York...a bad remake of nearly every sci-fi Grade B movie about asteroids ever made.

[@Platyfurmany]

Why is it that asteroids always impact in New York City/Los Angeles/Tokyo/London (take your pick) in all scenarios???

[@MaxArceus]

Because they'd be the worst case scenario. In movies that's fun because it results in massive destruction of sights known world-wide In science it's important to take the worst case scenario such that you're prepared for the worst. Any real life scenario can only be as bad as that, and is likely not as bad, which should make any preparations you'd deemed sufficient actually be sufficient. If you'd take a just a small town in your preparation scenario, and you suddenly have to evacuate ten million people because the real wold's cruelly much worse, you'd be stuck sitting there, "Hold up, that's not what we prepared for! How are we supposed to do this much??" and then everyone dies, the end.

[@scottmantooth8785]

that's why during such a crisis you actively avoid places like the Statue of Liberty or other famous landmark...it's just an intergalactic magnet for getting whacked from outer space of the sight of an alien invasion

[@Walter-wo5sz]

Wishful thinking.

[@pauldeddens5349]

Ever heard of murphys law? yeah, big populated areas tend to have a murphys law for fictional chaos

[@scottmantooth8785]

@@pauldeddens5349 also something to do with plot convenience and the ratio of intersecting tropes at right angles and a complex formula relating to the consumption of alcohol, desperation and deadlines

[@howlingGeorge]

dude !!! you just pitched a great movie !!!

[@geraldmerkowitz4360]

While you claim it's perfectly safe for us living in 2019, the people of Chelyabinsk might disagree.

[@PepinsSpot]

They should've used the nuke in the first place and detonate it above the surface of the asteroid.

[@MrBranboom]

So is there any talk about practicing this? Like actually building a thing and moving a space body. Cuz I think that would be pretty cool.

[@Gileadean]

There is such a test, called "Double Asteroid Redirection Test" en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Double_Asteroid_Redirection_Test

[@aflacduck2]

I think we may see large objects from space hitting us in our lifetime. Afterall, there was that one in Russia a few years back. Had that been made of harder stuff and make contact with say ANY major city, probably the worst natural disaster in human history. And no one knew it was coming.

[@godless1014]

I doubt it. The average human life span is just so incredibly tiny compared to the rarity of such strikes. Then again, a giant asteroid could hit and kill me before I finish this sent.......

[@FelipeKana1]

TTmore, I was wondering the same. Our sky survey is not complete (and its impossible to know if it is complete... one can't know how much it is missing to know from what they know...) and is really strange that Scishow forgot about this... Btw, a doomsday scenario, if one will happen, will probably be due to something we don't know about. Only way to get us off guard.

[@Beryllahawk]

So many novels around this notion. Lucifer's Hammer comes to mind as one where they didn't manage even to nudge it out of the way. And hitting the ocean isn't much better - tidal wave, anyone?

[@thehurricane6767]

Better start building the Stonehenge Defense system. #acecombat

[@benjaminrandall4827]

In a scenario like this it really shows how country can back each other up I love it

[@bigredwolf6]

Can we get the UN to amend the whole no nukes in space treaty to have an exception for asteroids and comets? I feel like we should do that right now. Like this month. Because politicians take forever to do anything

[@DragoniteSpam]

Is the caution meant to prevent bad actors from claiming they're aiming for an asteroid and then taking the opportunity to nuke somebody on Earth, or something? You'd think an attempt to stop an asteroid from hitting us in the face would take priority over something silly like politics.

[@General12th]

@@DragoniteSpam If a country is honestly gearing up to nuke someone, even the most rigorous treaty wouldn't have stopped them. It's like the opponents of the bathroom bill all over again.

[@DragoniteSpam]

@@General12th You'd think, right? I can't think of any other reason to argue against HEY WE CAN AVERT A MODERN CHICXULUB IMPACT over the space weapons treaty other than something like that, though.

[@oopsy444]

Patrick star: why do we take the earth AND PUSH IT SOMEWHERE ELSE

[@azerdraco3146]

Netflix - The Wandering Earth THAT is why.

[@Skip6235]

Given how immense the planet is and how relatively small cities are it seems really really really implausible that the asteroid would be headed towards Denver and then NYC both

[@mikhailangel3258]

panic that will ensue is deadlier than before it impacts

[@PxPunk80]

Denver resident here... Please send it to Denver.

[@Restilia_ch]

In one of my college courses, I was in a group that placed the Tunguska event over NYC and analyzed what that would do. Short answer: pretty much what happened here.

[@paintingstarss]

if this really happened I think Denver would be the most hated city, and there would be so many memes about the whole thing

[@kcvriess]

Wouldn't it be a good idea to start developing and producing these deflector crafts and put them in standby orbits at all the Lagrange points?

[@RangerRuby]

How do they name these objects from outer space? Do they just have a random number-letter generator?

[@chrismain7472]

Who's watching this in 2020 and feels like it's the grand finale?

[@tncorgi92]

When it comes to our government, there is never "plenty of time." Everything is done at the last minute by the lowest bidder and only with a bunch of pork and kickbacks attached.

[@professorpenguin6884]

"Sure this plan will save the world, but will it net me more voters?"

[@sujimtangerines]

@@professorpenguin6884 Also, "I need to make sure companies I invest in (or get donations out of) will get the contracts to build it."

[@nolanwestrich2602]

We so need to develop a plan for solar events aimed at Earth. They would cripple civilization way more than most asteroids will, and have a higher chance of happening.

[@uss_04]

Scientists from New York on the Last Day: “Maybe we should just have given up Denver”

[@mynecessaryprogram]

Are you sure about that? The asteroid 2019 OD, which is the size of a pyramid, passed between the Earth and the Moon in July 25th, 2019. I think that’s a pretty close call if you ask me.

[@beefcakeandgravy]

OK Elephant in the room. What if the asteroid is headed for somewhere.... Err... Unlikeable to Trump or the USA? They still gonna put in as much effort to do something about it? You know, kinda like how hard you hit the brakes depending on what or who's in front of you....?

[@uss_04]

Observers on the ground watching the Approaching Asteroid rated it “F” For “Ffffffffffff..”

[@ch4.hayabusa]

Why would NY be uninhabitable after? Also, you made it seem like there is no danger... When in fact we missed a huge one two weeks after the Russian dashcam meteor.

[@acetate909]

Given the existential risk a meteor strike poses it's important to have a contingency plan. Even if the odds are less than 1% for a near future devastating event we need to address the problem given the _impact_ that less then 1% event would have. Given enough time that low probability rises to a statistical guarantee.

[@Jeff121456]

Given enough time and it is no longer a near future event.

[@acetate909]

@@Jeff121456 Lol...yes, obviously. That wasn't my point or even something that I was implying. Also, that less than 1% statistic that he cited was for known objects and their trajectories. There could very well be a multiple miles in area mass with a 100% chance of hitting earth that we haven't located, yet.

[@Signonthisline]

is a massive civilization disrupting solar flare event more likely than a civ disrupting asteroid?

[@Starfloofle]

Frankly, I feel like it is, and there's very, very little we could do to stop it or even predict it if it did, at least in comparison

[@gregorymalchuk272]

@@Starfloofle Disconnecting the grid for the day or so that the flare hits the earth would mitigate a lot of damage. And we would have a warning of a day or so.

[@Starfloofle]

@@gregorymalchuk272 Sure, that's hypothetically possible, but we are NOT organized enough to actually pull that off. Pretty sure this video itself perfectly demonstrates that. There's no emergency protocol for solar disaster as far as I know, and a lot of tech piggybacks off of VERY old hardware that's still in use because it hasn't needed to be replaced. One or the other is gonna break first and either way it'll be cataclysmic. The event would destroy most if not all global communication and most nations are NOT self-sufficient anymore. Even if said technology can still be replaced through what did survive, the world would collapse into a dark age due to the utter breakdown of globalization and we'd be completely and utterly fucked. The ensuing anarchy would likely devastate anything that survived. You've seen how people react in a "minor" disaster like our ongoing pandemic. Imagine that but several orders of magnitude worse. We honest to god don't stand a chance as we are. Humanity might endure, it has before, but everything we've worked for would be set *very* far back. We are *not* equipped as a society to handle a solar storm right now and that shortsighted *must* change before the inevitable happens.

[@vermithraxpejorative1602]

@5:11, launching a nuke is a violation of international agreements...that's funny. So I shouldn't worry about Russia or N. Korea launching nukes again the US because, ha ha, that "would be against international agreements".

[@hawk3123]

specifically launching a nuke in space. not at other countries, though i'm sure there are treaties for that too

[@kirmie44]

I mean, it's only Denver. Denver for a light show anyone?

[@aravtripathi8826]

Those conferences were basically scientist mun's

[@AppNasty]

Anyone else wanna play this scenario DnD style? Have the Game Master who understands enough science setup a scenario of an asteroid. Each player, with at least a basic knowledge of science, Then uses real scientific data and plans to try and save the world. The GM is of course in control of the ending but if played fairly, We could experiment with gameplay and find a meaningful ending. I would have LOVED to see a convention like this NASA one hire or ask a volunteer DnD player who happened to also be a real scientist, Take lead and role play the scenarios for the scientists to try and foil. I call wizard/astrophysicist!

[@jamesdriscoll9405]

Some of the universe simulators may be interesting along these lines.

[@NewMessage]

Apophis just became scarier...

[@scottmantooth8785]

think of it as a multi ton bunny rabbit flying through space....doe that make it less scary?

[@russellstephan6844]

Of course, such a scenario only works when we know of the object and its obit *way* in advance -- like years. If the object has a highly elliptical orbit with a period greater than a few hundred years, we won't get but a day's or few hours notice. It's tough to see stuff in space which hasn't been observed before.

[@Azknowledgethirsty]

Highly elliptical orbits are usually for gravel like comets that would burn, however there is the real threat of an unusual comet-asteroid that might be dangerous.

[@russellstephan6844]

Chelyabinsk and Oumuamua... My original premise still holds. Unless it's an object we've seen previously, there's not much to be done nor much time to fret about it.

[@elwoodzmake]

Well... It's a highly improbable scenario. Most asteroids the sea or uninhabited areas like the last big flash in Siberia. There was another giant impact with the force of multiple hiroshima bombs recently.. and we nearly missed it if not for one satelite randomly picking up the giant explosion...

[@LuneLovehearn]

the current and future enemy is not human, its out there... and asteroids are just the beginning.. so stop waging for war and start making a planetary defense. it will be worth the effort.

[@Starfals]

We will need to call Bruce Willis to help us :D

[@A3Kr0n]

Is there some way to speed up this imaginary asteroid, and make it bigger?

[@AudibleFist]

Sounds like a Kobayashi Maru that we’d only win if we broke the sandbox of the scenario, or did something extremely different and more creative than what we planned to do.

[@moth.monster]

I feel like, in the case of global destruction, nuking an asterioid would be seen as okay.

[@MrMaThaMi]

Me too. Seem like it's the only reasonable way to use nuke boom.

[@RaumBances]

Taking special interests into consideration along with how this will be funded was completely left out. If we do decide the solution involves 7 rocket launches, we are looking at a launch bill of about 300 million plus the cost of developing and building each impactor and the probe. Deep Impact cost 300 million itself. End costs would be near a trillion dollars. Who's going to pay that if you can't determine which country it will impact? It's great we are looking at the problem as a species but my faith in humanity is always tinted with a nice, thick pair of special interest glasses because they impact us on a daily basis. An asteroid hit only impacts us every 10s of thousands of years.

[@AkamirNN]

They did specify the countries that contributed to the launchers in the video, but I totally see your point. If something is large enough to have an effect across the globe, especially environmentally, it would be a delicate and complicated political ground to figure out who is paying for what. However, there is a chance that when there is a common enemy, countries are willing to forfeit quite a bit of money for success and cooperate with those they disliked before, just like with WW2. As much as an impending global disaster would be absolutely terrible, it could be very incredibly beneficial for international cooperation and peace when people are slapped with the realization that their personal disagreements - be it political, racial, or even religious - are petty in comparison to the looming threat that could wipe out an unknown and large portion of Earth's population and infrastructure and no amount of threatening it will make it go away.

[@grimwatcher]

I mean, we could do without Denver...

[@tristezzasvanire9220]

I'm a Coloradan and I agree.

[@scottmantooth8785]

they have legal pot there...they will be cool about it during the event right?

[@lyreparadox]

Why not include a nuke on the first reconnaissance drone? That way they have something right there to do an early nudge, when it might make more of a difference.

[@jonskowitz]

My thought exactly. The nuclear testing laws could probably be worked around in this case using an international observation team or something of the sort

[@ZomBeeNature]

That last day event was upsetting... 😐

[@equesdeventusoccasus]

The introduction to "Truth or Fail" on the podcast is impossible to understand. Until your live podcast, I thought that the segment was called Intra-Fail. (Which makes no sense, but it was the best I could come up with.)

[@TitanUranusOfficial]

I need to gain some weight on my asteroid - to make it a little meteor.

[@Annie.xx-xx]

Theortically speaking😂 When would they even tell us about the impact as to not cause utter chaos and carnage?

[@Azknowledgethirsty]

Everything is public, at least in nasa and esa

[@TroyEagan]

Finally checked out tangents. I love it. I should have listened sooner.

[@letoatreides4041]

Hank is getting Bane level Traps by next year just watch. Boi wil b swole

[@madjedi2235]

I really didn’t know that an asteroid as small as 300m could cause such serious damage... let’s just hope that no sizable space rocks come our way ;)

[@bobthegoat7090]

You know 300 meters is almost 3 American football fields or 3 soccer fields if you are European like me

[@animefreak5757]

It's not really the mass that's the issue so much, it's the speed. More specifically, the total energy of the object. Speed exponentially increases the energy of the asteroid

[@Carewolf]

@@animefreak5757 The speed _linearly_ increases the energy, the energy is literally speed times mass.

[@animefreak5757]

@@Carewolf right, my bad, i was thinking more in terms on stuff on earth (when stopping a car for instance it isn't linear with speed)

[@Carewolf]

@@animefreak5757 Right, braking _time_ is linear with speed, but braking distance is quadratic (time times speed). Sorry for harping on misuses of "exponential", it is just a pet peeve of mine.

[@3DPT]

Thanks for sparing Denver, It should hit CA instead....

[@BirdieRumia]

Nah. North Dakota. There's like a 25 percent chance they wouldn't even notice. And if it did hit people, it wouldn't be anyone you know because North Dakota doesn't actually exist, it's just an elaborate hologram projected by Mt. Rushmore.

[@zumkzwxwq]

Time to build Stonehenge and SOLG I guess.....? Then in ten years we would get ourselves Arsenal Bird and self-autonomous drones.

[@MaxArceus]

They'd better put 8k cameras as well as a legion of high speed cameras everywhere to film it.

[@Duncan_Idaho_Potato]

"Fun" fact! This video is about asteroids. But COMETS, on the other hand, can 1. come out of nowhere 2. move so fast that those pokey little asteroids seem to be standing still by comparison and 3. be f*#&ing GINORMOUS compared to the Earth-crossing asteroids we already know about. Even better (read: worse), if one just happened to come from the general direction of the sun, we wouldn't even know it was coming for us until shortly before it impacts. Sleep well!

[@danielhollifield5553]

This reminded me of One Punch Man.

[@remkoburger6595]

Why ALWAYS New York?

[@sumsriv]

That went from a steven soderberg real life what if disaster thought piece to a michael bay ending with the asteroid hitting manhattan...

[@Battleship009]

What if we build a Stonehenge Rail Gun Network?

[@Gabriel87100]

My man

[@dmknight08]

We are only able to track a small percentage of the 360 degree night sky. It would not be absurd for a single large asteroid or a smaller group of asteroids to travel toward us incognito until suddenly spotted within the orbit of Jupiter. Also, it only requires one perfect nudge to slingshot an asteroid or even a moon straight at us. I feel that this claim is a bit over confident.

[@rarebeeph1783]

drills are just disaster roleplay

[@paintingstarss]

Would ten days to impact be to little time to try to strap an already made nuclear warhead onto a rocket and attempt to hit the asteroid chunk to break it up into pieces? Or would the fragments still end up hitting the atmosphere so close together it's essentially as if they're still one?

[@jamesleduke873]

Possibly. The fragments would still likely hit the atmosphere, but if they're small enough, they'll just burn up.

[@j.lucido9536]

Can we do a video about torino scale?

[@TheP3NGU1N]

Right as Asteroid Apophis decided to stroll through the solar system ...

[@scottmantooth8785]

bit of a step, step glide sort of thing only an asteroid does not have feet that we can identify and is not known for needing recreational activity to maintain its shape and current trajectory

[@TheP3NGU1N]

@@scottmantooth8785 can't tell if bad english.. or bad joke?

[@scottmantooth8785]

@@TheP3NGU1N bit of both...i have a love of word salad and writing tangents that go in many directions at once...a bit like chasing a squirrel

[@noidea91]

But what about assteroids?

[@HyperIonMake]

"Its a violation of international agreements". Those agreements are made to prevent the experimentation with nukes in space, and avoid general increases in nuclear armament. I am certain if we were talking losing an entire city, we would see an unprecedented level of support. Im also curious the effect on Denver. In theory, apon anoucing it might get destroyed in the next ten years the population would probably drop 100 fold. People would leave of course, but the bigger problem is companies would leave. Then, when disaster is avoided, we suddenly have a nearly empty modern city. Definitely a weird economic effect. Also. An asteroid which somehow gets split by kenetic impacts after our last chance to deal with it and somehow ends up exactly in the dead center of new york city? I understand the point of the simualtion, but thats not realistic. If we are sending 6 impacts and 3 are enough to do the job then its literally impossible for the last impact to somehow split it in such a way that a chunk gets back on course. It seems the conference wanted to jam in another scenario, and thats the only way they could do it. But that couldnt happen. Either it splits early on and we have more chunks we have to divert, or it splits later and all the chunks miss. Also, manhattan is comparably tiny. The chance it would happen to be dead center of one of the most populated cities on the planet is... unlikely.

[@rustymolla]

I know it's just an ad, but honestly do check out SciShow Tangents. One of the few podcasts I listen to immediately when I get the notification. (Sam's my favorite, sorry everyone else!)

[@AlohaMilton]

kinetic impactor worked on 200m rubble pile, couldn't stop 60m that presumably had more cohesion? something about the physics of the simulation seems a little contrived to create a statement of a result...

[@kapitainnemoder5]

When was the last time the USA respected international law?

[@dogfish3373]

Lol, only when it benefits them.

[@multi_misa72]

what about the space rocks that we saw only as they pased REAL CLOSE? WHERE ARE THEY ON YOUR SCALE?

[@Ashminigun]

Oh boy. I cannot imagine the hoohaa generated if the mainstream media (and other clickbait sites) misinterpret this asteroid impact drill as a real one

[@ChrisChoi123]

i live in queens so i should be safe

[@LMacNeill]

"Launching a nuke into space is a violation of international agreements." I'm thinking this is one of those "don't ask for permission, but ask for forgiveness later" situations. Screw international politics when you're talking about saving millions of people from a space rock.

[@aerospacenews]

Seems like we need to have some recon and kinetic ships in orbit or at the moon gate ready to go so the launch and intercept cycles are shorter.

[@bigghoss762]

Maybe one day science will be able to figure out how to take out Denver AND New York instead of just one. This is why these drill are important.

[@xeekk]

I really enjoyed this one!

[@MegaAwesomeNick]

As someone who lives in Denver and has asteroid anxiety, this simultaneously made me feel better and worse at the same time.

[@PrincessTS01]

I THINK THEY TRIED THAT ONE IN THE MOVIE ARMAGADON

[@General12th]

I DON'T THINK WE CAN USE FICTION MOVIES TO DETERMINE WHETHER OR NOT IT'S POSSIBLE TO DEFLECT ASTEROIDS

[@robertsteinbeiss8478]

Yo got me scared! .. Good you!

[@lissaleggs4136]

We need to snatch it and put it in orbit around moon so it stops drifting away from earth. .

[@copperhamster]

I prefer gravity tractors. Also, from a statistical standpoint don't let it bother you. Planetwide disruption impacts have averaged about 1/20th of the frequency of eruptions caused by the Yellowstone hotspot.

[@renerpho]

Gravity tractors are great for impacts that are many decades away, because you can apply the necessary force over a very long timespan. For the scenario at the conference, warning time was 8 years, which is far too short for a gravity tractor to be an option. Taking the option of a gravity tractor away was a deliberate decision by the planners of the scenario, who wanted a scenario that put our mitigation abilities to the limit.

[@renerpho]

But yes, I prefer gravity tractors, too, whenever they are a viable option!