There is a cause that unites Luca Parmitano, Stephen Hawking, Brian May (Queen guitarist and astrophysicist) and over a hundred other scientists: it is called #ISUPPORTAIM and is a campaign in support of the mission of ESA Asteroid Impact Mission (AIM , in fact).
On December 1-2, the European Space Agency Ministerial Conference in Lucerne (Switzerland), it
will decide whether or not to fund the project, which plans to test, along with NASA, an asteroid deflection maneuver.
There are tens of millions of Near Earth Objects (NEOs), celestial debris or boulders whose orbit may cross that of Earth. In October 2016, they were identified only 15,000. If one of these objects were to point to our planet, how can we defend ourselves?
COORDINATED ATTACK. The probe AIM would act within the AIDA mission (Asteroid Impact Assessment & Deflection) in collaboration with NASA. Two probes, the ESA and the AIM of the DART NASA, would leave in October 2020 in the direction of the asteroid 65803 Didymos binary system, with the aim of hitting the smaller of the two boulders, 170 m the "moon" of diameter renamed Didymoon.
DATA COLLECTION. The two spacecraft would reach the goal in 2022. DART is scaglierebbe against satellite asteroid at a speed of 6 km / s, trying to slow it down and divert the trajectory (with so-called technical impact kinetic). AIM should instead collect images and data on the debris released by the impact, it would also see from Earth, like a trail of debris similar to those of comets.
GENERAL TESTS. The importance of the mission will be in the possibility to test the effectiveness and feasibility of these maneuvers, which one day could prove the only way to save the Earth from a dangerous impact. Just as the Rosetta mission is critical been recognized by both the scientific point of view, both from the technological and engineering, so it will be important, they say the project leaders, continue to invest and explore small celestial objects, such as asteroids.
HOW support it. To support the mission in person, do not miss the interactive video below, with the appeal of the scientists (in which you can decide what to do, as in a story at forks); sign the petition and tweeting with the hashtag: #ISUPPORTAIM.
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