Space nukes, solar lasers & ‘gravity tractors’…how mankind could stop asteroid 2024 YR4 from smashing into Earth SCIENTISTS have unveiled several options to stop 2024 YR4, an asteroid the size of a football pitch from smashing into Earth.
Another nuclear option would be to detonate the nuclear weapon further away from the asteroid with the idea that the explosion would damage the surface of the rock and knock it off course.
Deflecting an asteroid using this method would also prevent the rock from fragmenting into chunks that could also pose a threat to Earth.
Data from the test revealed that launching a spacecraft into an asteroid could move any space rock smaller than 1km in diameter, like 2024 YR4, off its catastrophic trajectory.
If carried out correctly, there would be minimal damage to the asteroid and therefore no risk of chunks of space rock falling to Earth.
