NASA, America's space agency, is being charged with leading the way to protect against an asteroid on a collision course with Earth.
And a top White House science adviser says we have to be prepared for such a horrifying scenario.
In separate 10-page letters to the House Committee on Science and Technology and the Senate Committee on Commerce, Science and Transportation, John Holdren, director of the White House Office of Science and Technology Policy, or OSTP, outlines plans for,
"(A) protecting the United States from a near-Earth object that is expected to collide with Earth; and (B) implementing a deflection campaign, in consultation with international bodies, should one be necessary."
The White House has asked Congress to consider how to best deal with the potential threat to Earth of an impact with an asteroid from space.
It may seem that Earth could be the target of a giant rock from space, so Holdren insists that,
"the possibility of a future collision involving a more hazardous object should not be ignored."
NASA's Near Earth Object program, or NEO, looks for and monitors asteroids that are at least a kilometer in diameter.
But, as Holdren points out, one problem in the search is that,
"the orbits of known objects can be changed by gravitational or solar radiation perturbations, or even collisions with other objects, meaning that periodic monitoring of known NEOs must also be conducted."
The White House OSTP office is working to establish plans and procedures in the event of a NEO threat to America.
One of those plans involves using the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA), in the Department of Homeland Security, to handle responsibilities on the ground regarding an NEO threat.
After an asteroid-to-Earth trajectory is determined to impact an area of the U.S., FEMA would notify the population through the National Warning System and it would begin emergency response activities.
Holdren's letter also indicates the importance of notifying other countries of an impending asteroid strike,
"in an effort to minimize the potential loss of life and property."
So the good news is that high-level discussions are on the plate as to how Earth can defend itself against the onslaught of a potential disaster from space.
The bad news:
There's no plan set up. For the time being, we're staying out of harm's way.
Here is the entire text of Holdren's letter to Congress:
Documents & Reports: October 15, 2010 - OSTP Response to Congress on Near-Earth Objects: House - Senate
This White House preparation against an asteroid collision, really means they are facing the Hercolubus inbound with unease because they cannot do anything.
The solution is not collective but individual, when that happens every person that gets prepared will be saved but if you did not do anything to increase your conscience level you will not have any chance to survive.
Link:http://lifechanyuan.org/bbs/forum.php?mod=viewthread&tid=2129