Asteroids in our sights
Our planetary defense: A sham
On Monday last week, the European Space Agency ESA launched a space probe called "Hera". Its ultimate goal is planetary defense: against asteroids. Author and scientist Christian Mähr explains what can - and cannot - be done against such a monstrous creature from outer space.
"Hera" is a technical abbreviation and alludes to the Greek goddess Hera, wife of the chief god Zeus and patroness of family, home and hearth. The probe is part of a program that is officially intended to defend the Earth. No, not against evil aliens, but against "evil" asteroids which, for whatever tricky celestial mechanical reasons, head for the inner solar system and, with a lot of bad luck, hit the Earth. That would be more than unpleasant: the Chelyabinsk asteroid that exploded in Siberia a few years ago was only 20 meters in diameter and caused no deaths, but thousands of injuries - due to shattered windows.
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