It is likely that we will be forced to place a powerful weapon of mass destruction in Earth’s orbit to eliminate potential asteroids that sooner or later hit Earth.
Indeed, this weapon will be highly controversial because it will be able to strike both an asteroid and an enemy country. What if there are no such weapons, and the danger from space really appears? According to scientists, sooner or later, it will happen. President John F. Kennedy, in his famous “The Moon Speech,” stated that humanity won’t see space filled with weapons of mass destruction. He said that people will place, on Earth’s orbit, the instruments of knowledge and understanding. I believe in Kennedy’s proper intentions. Still, what if, sooner or later, a dangerous asteroid is on its way to hit our planet? According to Roger D. Launius’ book “The History Of Space Exploration” (published by Thames & Hudson), it is only a matter of time before a big object hits the Earth.
Today (I wrote this text on the 6th of April, 2023), the world is on the verge of the Third World War.
I hope the war in Ukraine won’t be the beginning of this dramatic event. I cannot imagine the USA or China placing a weapon of mass destruction in the cosmos. Even if this weapon were considered to destroy only asteroids, all other nations would vote against such an occurrence. Still, the truth is that there is a possibility that a deadly space object will appear on Earth’s trajectory and simply hit it. For today, it is a science-fiction scenario.
Nevertheless, it can happen sooner or later.
In today’s post, I want to stress that putting a weapon of mass destruction in Earth’s orbit is a matter of time. It may not have happened in the XXI century. Still, it can occur in the near future. For example, an asteroid as giant as a bus that will hit New York would destroy the whole city. Rocks from outer space bigger than one mile (1.6 km) across could wipe out vast swathes of humanity. Should we create the titled weapon ready to destroy asteroids? If yes, who will govern it? The USA, China, or Russia?
