In both cases, if the time got too short, the researchers found no mission would be successful at diverting the rock. There were no situations where a type 0 mission made sense for Apophis. Given more time, type 2 missions were sometimes better, depending how difficult it appeared to be to deflect from its course. If time was short, a type 1 mission was usually the best option: collect data quickly in order to properly aim the impact. There were just a handful of instances where type 1 missions made sense.Īpophis was a different, more complicated story. If time was short, though, a quick-and-dirty type 0 mission was the way to go. Given enough time, they found, type 2 missions were almost always the right way to deflect Bennu. The researchers developed a method for calculating which mission is best based on two factors: the time between the mission start and the date the planet killer will reach its keyhole, and the difficulty involved in properly diverting the specific planet killer.Īpplying those calculations to two well-known planet-killer asteroids in Earth’s general neighborhood, Apophis and Bennu, the researchers came up with a complex set of instructions for future asteroid deflectors in the event one of those objects started heading for a keyhole. Related: Crash! 10 biggest impact craters on Earth Type 2 missions are even better, but take yet more time and resources to get underway. But they also take more time and resources. Type 1 missions are more likely to succeed, the researchers wrote, because they can determine the incoming rock’s mass and velocity far more precisely.
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