Deflecting an Asteroid Will Be Harder Than Scientists Thought

schwit1 shares a report from UPI: According to new asteroid collision models designed by scientists at Johns Hopkins University, deflecting a large rock headed for Earth will be harder than previously thought. Using the most up-to-date findings on rock fracturing, researchers developed computer models to more accurately simulate asteroid collisions. For the newest study, scientists decided to divide the model into two phases. Phase one modeled the immediate fracturing that happens in the wake of a collision -- the processes that play in a matter of seconds. The second phase simulated the gravitational re-accumulation process that happens over the course of several hours or days.

The first phase of the updated model showed a large asteroid is not destroyed by a much smaller asteroid. Instead, millions of cracks form throughout, the core fractures and a crater is left behind. During phase two, the fractured core exerts a strong gravitational pull on the smaller pieces of debris and shrapnel broken during the impact. Because the asteroid did not crack completely during phase one, the space rock retained significant strength. If scientists are going to develop an asteroid deflection strategy that can actually work, they need to know how much force it really takes to destroy or deflect one. The latest study -- published in the newest issue of the journal Icarus -- showed it's more force than was originally thought.

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