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posted by CoolHand on Tuesday June 30 2015, @11:25PM   Printer-friendly
from the overlooked-and-underfunded dept.

Asteroid threats seems only taken seriously when the last close call is fresh in memory. But it didn't last long enough to establish consistent funding. On March 23, 1989, when an asteroid 300 meters in diameter called 1989FC passed within 684 000 kilometers from Earth. New York Times wrote, "In cosmic terms, it was a close call." This event also woke up the powers that were after this arguably close brush with total annihilation. The US Congress asked NASA to prepare a report on the threat posed by asteroids. The document from 1992, "The Spaceguard Survey: Report of the NASA International Near-Earth-Object Detection Workshop," was rather bleak.

If a large Near-Earth Object (NEO) were to hit the Earth, the report said, its denizens could look forward to acid rain, firestorms, and an impact winter induced by dust being thrown kilometers into the stratosphere. After reports from the National Research Council made it clear that meeting the discovery requirement outlined in the Congressional mandate was impossible given the lack of program funding, NEOO got a tenfold budget increase from 2009 to 2014. Yet it still faces a number of difficulties. An audit of the program released September 2014 described the NEOO program as "a one-man operation that is poorly integrated and lacking in objectives and oversight".


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  • (Score: 3, Informative) by MichaelDavidCrawford on Wednesday July 01 2015, @12:16AM

    by MichaelDavidCrawford (2339) Subscriber Badge <mdcrawford@gmail.com> on Wednesday July 01 2015, @12:16AM (#203578) Homepage Journal

    I used to work for astronomer Jeremy Mould. He told me that what we needed were lots of modest sized scopes so everyone could get observing time. What Congress wanted was one single very large scope so we could see farther away but such a scope would be so expensive that the votes to fund it werent there.

    Most real astronomical research doesnt require a big scope. Consider MIRA with a thirty inch.

    For asteroid detection we need enough scopes to cover the entire sky over the course of a year, in both hemispheres. You want a wide field of view as with the schmidt camera.

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  • (Score: 3, Funny) by bob_super on Wednesday July 01 2015, @12:24AM

    by bob_super (1357) on Wednesday July 01 2015, @12:24AM (#203582)

    > we need enough scopes to cover the entire sky over the course of a year

    I'm pretty sure that would settle the dispute about anthropomorphic global warming.

  • (Score: 2) by frojack on Wednesday July 01 2015, @12:29AM

    by frojack (1554) on Wednesday July 01 2015, @12:29AM (#203585) Journal

    so everyone could get observing time.

    Everyone? Seriously?

    Do we not have computers or are they all busy serving ads, sending spam, or skript-kiddy-ing their way into my ssh server?

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    • (Score: 2) by el_oscuro on Wednesday July 01 2015, @02:48AM

      by el_oscuro (1711) on Wednesday July 01 2015, @02:48AM (#203611)

      or are they all busy serving ads, sending spam, or skript-kiddy-ing their way into my ssh server?

      yes.

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  • (Score: 2) by kaszz on Wednesday July 01 2015, @12:31AM

    by kaszz (4211) on Wednesday July 01 2015, @12:31AM (#203587) Journal

    How much does a proper scope for NEO observation contribution cost? and what are the more detailed specifications?

    I recall some filthy rich person giving away loads of analog video cameras when those were expansive and used cassettes to a lot of people all around the globe in order to tape abuse of people in order to deal with the issue by publication. Perhaps something similar is needed to address this?

    It would be kind of hilarious if an asteroid were found months in advance to have a course to hit some important persons property. Unlikely to ever happen.. oops ;)

    • (Score: 2) by bob_super on Wednesday July 01 2015, @12:42AM

      by bob_super (1357) on Wednesday July 01 2015, @12:42AM (#203592)

      > It would be kind of hilarious if an asteroid were found months in advance to have a
      > course to hit some important persons property. Unlikely to ever happen..

      With 70% of the place covered in water, and so much premium on beachfront property, it's more likely than not that any touchdown above a certain rock size will wipe out VIP real estate.

    • (Score: 2) by takyon on Wednesday July 01 2015, @01:54AM

      by takyon (881) <reversethis-{gro ... s} {ta} {noykat}> on Wednesday July 01 2015, @01:54AM (#203602) Journal
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    • (Score: 3, Interesting) by MichaelDavidCrawford on Wednesday July 01 2015, @05:22AM

      by MichaelDavidCrawford (2339) Subscriber Badge <mdcrawford@gmail.com> on Wednesday July 01 2015, @05:22AM (#203629) Homepage Journal

      schmidt cameras arecwuite difficult to make as they use a correcting lens in the front that has a complex shape. Maybe $100,000.00 for a thirty inch.

      You need real estate that is free of light pollution but a national or state park might permit it.

      You need someone to operate it, they need living expenses. Automation can reduce the cost of that but not eliminate it.

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