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China researchers propose nuclear blast to deflect a 100-meter asteroid

They say simulations show a 3-megaton explosion could fully break apart a roughly 100-meter asteroid and that burying the bomb 30 meters deep could more than triple the speed change versus a shallow blast.

Reported · Written up by our desk · Emerging Markets

Chinese researchers say they have identified a potentially effective approach to destroying or deflecting a large asteroid that could threaten Earth, using a nuclear bomb placed beneath the surface. The concept involves a first spacecraft that drives a metal penetrator into the asteroid to create a deep hole, followed by a second spacecraft dropping a nuclear device into the opening and detonating it.

According to the team at the China Academy of Launch Vehicle Technology in Beijing, simulations indicate that a 3-megaton explosion, roughly equivalent to 200 Hiroshima bombs, could completely blast apart an asteroid about 100 meters across. The researchers described the work in the Space: Science & Technology journal in May.

The team also reported that burying the bomb about 30 meters beneath the surface could more than triple the asteroid’s speed change compared with a shallow explosion. They said the two-step method would let engineers select the placement and depth of the device rather than relying on a single high-speed impact at a random spot.

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