SoftBonds
Posts: 862
Joined: 2/10/2012 Status: offline
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quote:
ORIGINAL: hardcybermaster to be fair, the space shuttle is specifically designed to be able to re enter the earths atmosphere, an asteroid isn't, if it's designed to do anything it's to make a fuck off big crater Which was essentially the problem under discussion. Whether intentional (oops, sorry N. Korea) or unintentional. Robert Heinlein in "The moon is a harsh mistress," wrote about a lunar nation dropping rocks on the Earth, and had Asimov double check the math. Heinlein being an engineer, and Asimov a respected scientist. Damage from a "falling rock," was expected to be "only," the equivalent of Hiroshima, though without the radiation. I think it was a 100 ton falling rock for that damage. I don't have a copy of the book handy though. As for burning up or being deflected, that is a problem for the space shuttle because it wants to land without a boom. If you aim directly at Earth, or even close, the rock will fall down, and if it is large enough, hit the surface. Yes, if you throw it at a sufficient angle you can bounce an asteroid off the atmosphere or slingshot it, but that is harder than just hitting the earth. Gravity, it works Bitches! Angle of approach can increase the amount vaporized by re-entry, but again, the larger the mass, the more gravity will help pull it on a straight course down. Also, the re-entry heat is caused by wind resistance, last I checked, "for every action, there is an equal and opposite reaction from a mother in law" meaning that the rock is slowed down by the resistance. Since it continues to have acceleration from gravity, but no acceleration tangent to earth, it will "curve," down. At the end of the day, mass is the question, if the rock is big enough, it can make a big boom. If it isn't, it will burn up and make pretty lights in the sky.
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Elite Thread Hijacker! Ignored: ThompsonX, RealOne (so folks know why I don't reply) The last poster is often not the "winner," of the thread, just the one who was most annoying.
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