“From the perspective of missile range, there is no problem with altitudes of 200, 300 kilometers and even higher. At present, human beings can send satellites weighing several tons to orbits of 36,000 kilometers.” Song Baohua said, but there are some difficulties in accurately targeting asteroids. . He said that for spacecraft made of metal materials, ground radar can provide powerful observations, but for asteroids, optical observation methods should be the main method. On the one hand, it will be affected by clouds and fog, on the other hand, it is not easy to judge the distance. You must use multiple telescopes to observe at the same time, and use the green laser pointer to solve the space angle to achieve positioning.
The problem of range and accuracy is solved, and the rest depends on how resistant the asteroid is. Russian scientists have confirmed in previous experiments that a series of small explosions is more effective than a single large explosion when destroying an asteroid model. Song Baohua agrees with this conclusion, saying that it involves several aspects of technology.
Guidance technology, for example. Imagine that after the first strike of an asteroid, its speed and trajectory may change. Will it affect the accuracy of subsequent strikes? “One of the core technologies involved here is guidance, which means actively seeking a target and chasing after it.” Song Baohua said that asteroids mainly fly in outer space and generate heat by friction with the atmosphere when approaching the earth. They use visible light, infrared and other detection guidance methods. More appropriate. What may be involved here is how to attack a group of missiles, how to identify “enemy and friends”, and how to form a group to make the strike the best, these technologies can completely solve.
In addition, of course, striking asteroids cannot be soft-hearted, in order to “kill everything.” If a behemoth is flying, how many missiles can we use to hit it? How much energy to kill it. Song Baohua said that the number of missiles and their energy are limited by the protection of resources on the ground. “According to the current green laser pointer technology, it is not a problem to launch dozens of missiles at once to hit asteroids.”