Scientist says nuclear weapons may be best bet for saving Earth from asteroids
(PhysOrg.com) -- If scientists detect an asteroid headed directly for Earth - one that was large enough to pose a serious threat to life on our planet - would it be wise to bring out nuclear weapons to prevent an impact? Over the past several years, scientists have expressed conflicting opinions on the use of nuclear weapons as a defense against asteroids. Part of the problem is that it`s very difficult to know what asteroids are made of, and how they will respond to different types of nuclear explosives. But at the semiannual meeting of the American Astronomical Society held last month, physicist David Dearborn of the Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory argued that nuclear weapons could be the best strategy for avoiding an asteroid impact - especially for large asteroids and little warning time.