Asteroid Threat : Defending Our Planet from Deadly Near-earth Objects (9781616149147) (30 page)

23
. Challenges: “Who We Are,” Secure World Foundation, last modified March 4, 2011,
http://www.swfound.org/about-us/who-we-are/
(accessed March 4, 2014).

24
. Secure World Foundation: “Planetary Defense,” Secure World Foundation, last modified July 16, 2013,
http://swfound.org/our-focus/planetary-defense/
(accessed March 4, 2014).

25
. Benediktov: Kirill Benediktov, “The Asteroid-Comet Danger and Planetary Defense: A View from Russia.”

26
. Russia and the United States save the planet: Ibid.

27
. The author was on the Survey and Detection Panel.

28
. Mitigation techniques: Committee to Review Near-Earth Object Surveys and Hazard Mitigation Strategies, Space Studies Board, Aeronautics and Space Engineering Board, Division on Engineering and Physical Sciences, and National Research Council,
Defending Planet Earth: Near-Earth-Object Surveys and Hazard Mitigation Strategies
, 69–79.

29
. A global threat: Ibid.

30
. Standing committee and international participation: Ibid., 95–96.

CHAPTER 6. THE DEPARTMENT OF PLANETARY DEFENSE

1
.  Von Braun and Disney: Mike Wright, “The Disney–von Braun Collaboration and Its Influence on Space Exploration,” 2.

2
.  von Braun's prediction: Cornelius Ryan,
Across the Space Frontier
, 12.

3
.  Ley on the station: Ibid., 98–117.

4
.  Haber on survival: Ibid., 82, 97.

5
.  Bennett's reaction: “Satellite Belittled: Admiral Says Almost Anybody Could Launch ‘Hunk of Iron,'”
New York Times
, October 5, 1957.

6
.  
Times
on Gagarin: “Russians Orbited the Earth Once,”
New York Times
, April 13, 1961.

7
.  Bark sandals: John Noble Wilford, “First into Space, Then the Race,” in
Anatomy of the Soviet Union: The Fifty Years
, by Harrison E. Salisbury, 343.

8
.  Murray: Told to the author.

9
.  Sorensen on Kennedy and the Moon: Theodore C. Sorensen,
Kennedy
, 525, 105.

10
. Speech: John F. Kennedy, “Address at Rice University on the Nation's Space Effort” (Rice University, Houston, Texas, September 12, 1962).

11
. Logsdon on Kennedy: John M. Logsdon,
The Decision to Go to the Moon: Project Apollo and the National Interest
, 27–28, 106.

12
. The Moon landing story: John Noble Wilford, “Men Walk on Moon,”
New York Times
, July 21, 1969.

13
. Toynbee and Van Doren: William E. Burrows, “Eminent Thinkers Mull Import of Moon Voyage for Mankind's Future,”
Wall Street Journal
, July 18, 1969.

14
. Lovell and Mead: Ibid.

15
. Asimov: Ibid.

16
. The
Times
eats crow: “A Correction,” editorial page,
New York Times
, July 17, 1969.

17
. Bean: John Noble Wilford, “Giant Leap to Moon, Then Space Lost Allure,”
New York Times
, February 9, 2003.

18
. Wilson's theory: E. O. Wilson, acceptance speech for the Kistler Prize, quoted in
The Next Thousand Years
, television project by Foundation for the Future, 96.

19
. Newitz: Annalee Newitz, “Escape Plans,”
Slate
, May 15, 2013,
http://www.slate.com/articles/health_and_science/science/2013/05/surviving_the_next_mass_extinction_humans_will_need_to_leave_earth_for_space.html
(accessed March 6, 2014).

CHAPTER 7. THE ULTIMATE STRATEGIC DEFENSE INITIATIVE

1
.  Chapman on Teller, Wood, and the report: Clark R. Chapman, Daniel D. Durda, and Robert E. Gold,
The Comet/Asteroid Impact Hazard: A Systems Approach
, 12.

2
.  Association of Space Explorers to the United Nations: Russell L. Schweickart, Thomas D. Jones, Frans von der Dunk, and Sergio Camacho-Lara,
Asteroid Threats: A Call for Global Response
, 3–5.

3
.  Camacho's statement: “Threat of Space Objects Demands International Coordination, UN Team Says,” United Nations News Centre, February 20, 2013.

4
.  Alvarez article: Luis W. Alvarez et al., “Extraterrestrial Cause for the Cretaceous-Tertiary Extinction,”
Science
, 1095–1108.

5
.  What is required: Spaceguard Survey Report,
Asteroid and Comet Impact Hazards
.

6
.  LONEOS: Edward Bowell, Bruce Koehn, and Brian Skiff, “The Lowell Observatory Near-Earth-Object Search (LONEOS): Ten Years of Asteroid and Comet Discovery,” 4.

7
.  Spacewatch: NASA, “Near-Earth Object Program: Spacewatch,” last modified March 7, 2014,
http://neo.jpl.nasa.gov/programs/spacewatch.html
(accessed March 7, 2014).

8
.  The US reconnaissance satellite program during the Cold War was first code-named Corona and then Keyhole, with successive satellites being called KH-4, KH-5, and so on through KH-11, which sent down imagery in near real time. See William E. Burrows,
Deep Black: Space Espionage and National Security
.

9
.  Sentinel's cost: Doug Messier, “B612 Foundation's Sentinel Telescope Will Cost $450 Million,”
Parabolic Arc
, April 20, 2013,
http://www.parabolicarc.com/2013/04/20/b612-foundations-sentinel-telescope-will-cost-450-million/
(accessed March 7, 2014).

10
. Sentinel and Lu's statement: Keith Cowing, “B612 Foundation Announces SENTINEL Mission,” NASA Watch, June 28, 2012.

11
. Musk and Hyperloop: “No Loopy Idea,”
Economist
, August 17, 2013, 65.

12
. Tonry: University of Hawaii Institute for Astronomy, “ATLAS: The Asteroid Terrestrial-Impact Last Alert System,” press release, February 15, 2013,
http://www.ifa.hawaii.edu/info/press-releases/ATLAS/
(accessed March 7, 2014).

13
. Mainzer: Darren Quick, “NASA's NEOWISE Survey Provides Best Estimate Yet of Potentially Hazardous Asteroids,”
Gizmag.com
, May 16, 2012,
http://www.gizmag.com/nasa-neowise-pha/22575/
(accessed March 7, 2014).

14
. Johnson: Author interview on August 8, 2013.

15
. Asteroids have a good side: Ibid.

16
. Perozzi: “Target Asteroid Tracked by European Teams,” Spaceguard Centre, July 19, 2013,
http://www.spaceguarduk.com/news/583-target-asteroid-tracked-by-european-teams
(accessed March 7, 2014).

17
. Drolshagen: Ibid.

18
. Bisei: S. Okumura et al., “Spaceguard Activity in Japan: Past and Future in Bisei Spaceguard Center,”
Asteroids, Comets, Meteors
(May 2012),
http://www.lpi.usra.edu/meetings/acm2012/pdf/6274.pdf
(accessed March 7, 2014).

19
. Hayabusa mission: “Hayabusa Spacecraft Returns Asteroid Artifacts from Space,” NASA, November 17, 2010,
http://www.nasa.gov/topics/solarsystem/features/hayabusa.html
(accessed March 7, 2014); “Hayabusa,”
Wikipedia
, last modified January 16, 2014,
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hayabusa
(accessed March 7, 2014).

20
. Chang'e 2: “Chang'e 2,”
Wikipedia
, last modified February 23, 2014,
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chang%27e_2
(accessed March 7, 2014).

21
. 4179 Toutatis: “4179 Toutatis,”
Wikipedia
, last modified
February 20, 2014,
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/4179_Toutatis
(accessed March 7, 2014).

22
. “Iron Fist”: Jane Perlez, “Chinese, with Revamped Force, Make Presence Known in East China Sea,”
New York Times
, July 28, 2013.

23
. Puchkov: “FEMA, Russian Ministry to Join Forces against Space Threat,” Spaceguard Centre, June 27, 2013,
http://www.spaceguarduk.com/news/576-fema-russian-ministry-to-join-forces-against-space-threat
(accessed March 7, 2014).

24
. Molchanov's statement: “Russia to Use Ballistic Missiles to Fight off Asteroid Threat,”
SpaceDaily.com
, January 31, 2013,
http://www.spacedaily.com/reports/Russia_to_use_ballistic_missiles_to_fight_off_asteroid_threat_999.html
(accessed March 7, 2014).

25
. Citadel: “Russia to Build Anti-meteorite Shield—The Project, Titled ‘Citadel,' Would Cost about $500 Million, and Could Be Implemented Only with International Cooperation,”
InvestmentWatch
(blog), March 12, 2013,
http://investmentwatchblog.com/russia-to-build-anti-meteorite-shield-the-project-titled-citadel-would-cost-about-500-million-and-could-be-implemented-only-with-international-cooperation/
(accessed March 7, 2014).

26
. Popovkin's reprimand: Doug Messier, “Roscosmos Head Reprimanded for Failures,”
Parabolic Arc
, August 2, 2013,
http://www.parabolicarc.com/2013/08/02/49548/
(accessed March 7, 2014).

27
. Apollo asteroids are a class of asteroid whose trajectories cross Earth's path. The first one to carry that name was seen and recorded in 1862. They are named after the Greek Sun god because of their close approach to the Sun. The Chelyabinsk asteroid was an Apollo. Suffice it to say they have no connection with the US manned lunar-landing program.

28
. AIAA position paper: American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA), “Dealing with the Threat of an Asteroid Striking the Earth,” 6–7.

29
. 2004 Planetary Defense Conference position paper: American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) 2004 Planetary Defense Conference,
White Paper Summarizing Findings
and Recommendations from the 2004 Planetary Defense Conference: Protecting Earth from Asteroids
, 8–9.

30
. 2007 Planetary Defense Conference position paper: American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics (AIAA) 2007 Planetary Defense Conference,
White Paper: Summary and Recommendations
2, 7, 14.

31
. AIAA position paper: Space Systems Technical Committee and Systems Engineering Technical Committee, “Responding to the Potential Threat of a Near-Earth-Object Impact,”
passim
.

32
. Bong Wei's plan: “Asteroid Impact Avoidance,”
Wikipedia
,
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Asteroid_impact_avoidance
(accessed March 7, 2014).

33
. IAA position: International Academy of Astronautics (IAA),
2013 IAA Planetary Defense Conference White Paper
, 11–12.

34
. Republicans and an asteroid capture: Kenneth Chang, “Plan to Capture an Asteroid Runs into Politics,”
New York Times
, July 30, 2013.

35
. NASA task force recommendations: NASA Advisory Council,
Final Report of the Ad-Hoc Task Force on Planetary Defense
, October 6–7, 2010,
passim
.

36
. Ibid.

37
. Morrison: David Morrison, “Impacts and Evolution: Protecting Earth from Asteroids,” 444–45.

38
. Harris and NEOShield defense: Leonard David, “Asteroid Threat to Earth Sparks Global ‘NEOShield' Project,”
Space.com
, January 26, 2012,
http://www.space.com/14370-asteroid-shield-earth-threat-protection-meeting.html
(accessed March 7, 2014).

39
. Proponents of SDI maintained that it was stabilizing because it was defensive. Its opponents, the author being among the first of them, believed that it was destabilizing because a nation that had an effective antiballistic-missile capability could be tempted to launch a preemptive first strike against its Cold War adversary because it thought it would survive a counterattack. See William E. Burrows, “Ballistic Missile Defense: The Illusion of Security,”
Foreign Affairs
, Spring 1984.

40
. DE-STAR: Elizabeth Howell, “Laser-Blasting System Could
Vaporize Big Asteroids,” Universe Today, February 15, 2013,
http://www.universetoday.com/100021/laser-blasting-system-could-blow-up-big-asteroids/
(accessed March 7, 2014).

41
. The need for a survey: David Morrison, Clark R. Chapman, and Paul Slovic, “The Impact Hazard,” 87.

42
. The Science Definition Team mandate: Near-Earth Object Science Definition Team, Study to Determine the Feasibility of Extending the Search for Near-Earth Objects to Smaller Limiting Diameters: Report of the Near-Earth Object Science Definition Team, iv–v.

CHAPTER 8. THE SURVIVAL IMPERATIVE

1
.  Schweickart's and Cernan's observations: Frank White,
The Overview Effect: Space Exploration and Human Evolution
, 38–39.

2
.  Osepok: Buzz Aldrin and John Barnes,
Encounter with Tiber
, 189.

3
.  The Intruder and the Bombardments: Ibid., 288.

4
.  The skipper: Told to the author.

5
.  Barbicane's pronouncement: Jules Verne,
Around the Moon
, 789.

6
.  The fate of Earth: Ibid., 791.

7
.  Clarke on human destiny: Arthur C. Clarke,
The Exploration of Space
, 185–86.

8
.  On making the Moon habitable: Ibid., 111–19.

9
.  The underground enclave: Ibid., 116.

10
. The Moon's advantages: Ibid.

11
. Jones on exploration: Tom Jones,
Sky Walking: An Astronaut's Memoir
, 343.

12
. Young on NASA: John W. Young,
Forever Young: A Life of Adventure in Air and Space
, 368.

13
. Clarke on planetary engineering: Clarke,
Exploration of Space
, 118.

14
. Space exploration: Gerard K. O'Neill, “The Colonization of Space.”