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From: Cryptoengineer <petertrei@gmail.com>
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Subject: =?UTF-8?Q?Re=3A_=E2=80=9CNASA_is_hiding_crucial_details_about_aster?=
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Date: Sun, 15 Dec 2024 11:02:12 -0500
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On 12/14/2024 5:35 PM, D wrote:
> 
> 
> On Sat, 14 Dec 2024, Cryptoengineer wrote:
> 
>> On 12/14/2024 4:37 PM, Bobbie Sellers wrote:
>>> On 12/14/24 09:54, Cryptoengineer wrote:
>>>> On 12/14/2024 12:31 AM, Lynn McGuire wrote:
>>>>> “NASA is hiding crucial details about asteroids that could THREATEN 
>>>>> Earth, warns senior SETI Institute astronomer”
>>>>>
>>>>> https://www.naturalnews.com/2024-12-12-nasa-hiding-details-about- 
>>>>> asteroids-threatening-earth.html
>>>>>
>>>>> “On Dec. 3, the small asteroid COWECP5 streaked into Earth's 
>>>>> atmosphere and exploded in a fiery display above Siberia. While the 
>>>>> event was dramatic, it was ultimately harmless because the space 
>>>>> rock was only 70 centimeters across and disintegrated before it 
>>>>> could cause any damage.”
>>>>>
>>>>> "If the asteroid had been larger, it could have caused significant 
>>>>> damage on the ground. And if it had been a true "city killer," like 
>>>>> the 400-meter-wide asteroid that astronomers feared would hit Earth 
>>>>> on Christmas Day in 2004, seven hours would not have been enough 
>>>>> time to evacuate millions of people or devise a defense strategy."
>>>>>
>>>>> "Every day, Earth is bombarded by an estimated 100 tons of space 
>>>>> debris, most of which burns up harmlessly in the atmosphere. But 
>>>>> every now and then, something much larger and more dangerous appears."
>>>>>
>>>>> "Astronomers have identified 36,765 NEOs, including more than 
>>>>> 11,000 that are over 140 meters across and 868 that are larger than 
>>>>> a kilometer. Out of those NEOs, 1,714 are considered potentially 
>>>>> hazardous, meaning there's a non-zero chance they could collide 
>>>>> with Earth."
>>>>>
>>>>> Um, 400 meter diameter is a quarter mile diameter.   That would 
>>>>> have left a big mark somewhere.
>>>>
>>>> NASA isn't 'hiding' a damn thing. This is just another example of the
>>>> crap style of 'journalism' found on the internet - the success of a
>>>> journalist is measured by how clickworthy the title is.
>>>>
>>>> pt
>>>
>>>      100 years back we did not worry about asteroid impacts
>>> and we should not worry about it now. Either we get a very bad
>>> one  or a survivable one.  Can we prevent it yet?  I think
>>> we fall a bit short there yet but maybe soon in the meantime
>>> we have lots of stuff to worry about and to act upon like
>>> Global overheating and the endless wars of the hyper-
>>> acquisitive.That is what billionaires have the lobes for.
>>
>> The DART mission in 2021 demonstrated a substantial redirection
>> of a 160 meter asteroid.
>>
>> https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Double_Asteroid_Redirection_Test#
>>
>> So, yes, we *can* do something about it.
>>
>> pt
>>
> 
> Let's take a page from the Enchiridion. Worry about what you can 
> control, and leave the rest. So for all of us who are not rocket 
> engineers, or responsible for NASAs budget, we can just peacefully get 
> on with our work. =)

Indeed. However, as technology progresses, we have more and more things
that come under our control, and being concerned about them becomes
rational.

Examples: Genetic engineering, planetary defence, ethics of AI
systems.

Speculating about how individuals and societies deal with the
arrival of new capabilities is the bread and butter of science
fiction.

pt