歐洲正在開發小行星防護盾...但它趕不切為31日飛掠地球的19公里寬怪物愛神星

Giant Asteroid 433 Eros Flyby Earth 31 Jan 2012
巨大小行星433愛神2012年1月31日飛掠地球
2012-01-28


歐洲正在開發小行星防護盾...但它趕不切為下週飛馳掠過地球的19公里寬怪物愛神星
Europe is developing an asteroid shield… but it won’t be in time for the 19-mile wide monster hurtling past Earth next week
By Katie Silver
Last updated at 2:18 PM on 27th January 2012
Translation by Autumnson Blog

Scientists are trying to find a way to protect Earth from the giant rocks which travel around the Milky Way.
科學家們正在嘗試尋找一種方法來保護地球，預防圍繞銀河系飛行的巨大岩石。
Run out of Berlin with funds from the EU, the NEOShield project, which will look for a way to protect earth from the space rocks, is expected to take three years to complete.
NEOShield項目將耗盡柏林來自歐盟的資金，尋找一種方法來保護地球防止太空岩石，預計需時三年完成。
Some of the ideas being tossed around at the moment include repelling asteroids with projectiles or explosives or using gravity to change its course.
此刻一些想法正被拋來拋去，包括用自動推進武器或爆炸物擊退小行星，或利用重力改變航程。

Can't touch this: Scientists are trying to build an asteroid shield to protect Earth from the giant space rocks. In three years they hope to have a plan to test devised
碰不得：科學家正在試圖建造一道小行星防護盾，來預防巨大的太空岩石保護地球。在三年中，他們希望有一個計劃來測試設計

The project though is a little late as a chunk of rock 400 times the City of London is set to hurtle closer than a rock of its size has in a very long time.
但該項目是有點晚，因為一岩石塊，400倍於倫敦金融城大小，準備飛馳近些，比很長一段時間以來一塊如它般大小的岩石。
The asteroid labelled ‘(433) Eros’ measures 19 by 8 by 8 miles and is set to pass by next week.
小行星標示為“愛神星（433）”，量度是19 x 8 x 8英里，及準備下週通過。
Despite its massive size, the cosmic rock shouldn’t be too cause too much of a threat as it is on a circular path far outside the moon's orbit.
儘管有龐大的面積，宇宙岩石應不會太造成過多的威脅，因為它是在月球軌道外遠遠的圓形路徑。
A smaller bus-sized asteroid is also set to pass extremely close to Earth today.

The asteroid 2012 BX34, will pass within 36,750 miles of Earth at about 3:30 p.m. Friday, tweeted astronomers with NASA's Asteroid Watch program.
Even though this is more than five times closer than the moon, at 11 meters wide, it won’t be any threat to earth.

‘It wouldn't get through our atmosphere intact even if it dared to try,’ Asteroid Watch scientists tweeted yesterday.

Nevertheless, with NASA estimating that there are almost one thousand asteroids over one kilometre in length and 19,500 over 100-metres, scientists at the Institute of Planetary Research are trying to find a way to protect Earth.

Scissors, paper, ROCK: A huge monster, 400 times the size of London, will be traveling uncomfortably close to our blue planet next week
包剪石：一巨大的怪物，400倍於倫敦大小，將在下週十分接近地遊經我們的藍色地球

With an investment of some €4 million by the European Commission and an extra €1.8 million coming from scientific institutions and partners, the German Aerospace Center aims to have a plan for a test mission drafted within three years.

After that, if they can find the extra cash, the mission may be launched by 2020.

The scientists will be looking at a host of ideas, many of which have already been proposed.

For one, there’s the ‘kinetic impactor’ plan where a massive projectile would deflect the asteroid.

Another is the ‘gravity tractor’ idea where a small probe would linger near the asteroid and use its gravitational traction to move it out of Earth’s way.

Or, like waging an all-out space war, some have suggested a full scale strike with nuclear missiles.

'Of course, a lot of things have already been proposed,' Alan Harris, the study’s leader, told Spiegel Online.

Just passin' by: This is the path of a small asteroid which will make an extremely close pass by Earth today
剛路過：這是一條小行星的路線，這今天將作極為接近地球的通過

‘But, so far, most of them have come from a single institution, perhaps even from a single person. So it has been hard to pursue them.’
Investigating each idea ‘will take place on paper and in lab experiments, since we don't have the money to do more than that,’ said Wolfram Lork, who works with a subsidiary on the project.
One other, coarser idea would be ‘blast deflection’ which would involve deterring the asteroid with directed explosive charges. Harris says this would be the ‘final, desperate approach.’
‘We would like to present plans for a feasible, affordable mission.

'We want to show the world it can be done,’ Harris said, adding that the ultimate solution might be a combining a gravity tractor with a kinetic impactor.
By observing the huge craters around the world - such as the Barringer Crater in Arizona or the Nördlinger Ries near Munich - scientists know that asteroids have struck Earth in its history and that, without action, they could well strike again.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-2092626/Asteroid-shield-wont-time-19-mile-wide-monster-hurtling-past-Earth-week.html#ixzz1knNC2lje

全是貴金屬的近地小行星愛神433準備在1月下旬在地球附近略過

週三發現的小行星2012 BX34週五非常近距離飛越地球