DART provides evidence that kinetic impactors can be part of a planetary-defense strategy. A real mission would still depend on the target's orbit, size, structure, and the warning time available, so the demonstration does not settle every planning question. The hosts connect deflection research with the need to find potentially hazardous objects, including dark asteroids that are difficult to detect in visible light.
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46:28>> So broader implications. Yes, >> we've got a valid measurement of beta. >> Yes. >> Now, that validates this kinetic impactor. That means that like in the future, we're not blowing things up, >> right? >> Like, if we're going to get twice the momentum enhancement, >> that means like, you know, all we need to really toggle is how big is the payload, >> which we can >> we we can toggle as much as we want, right? We can do multiple hits if we need to. And >> and then um >> like how fast are we moving, how big is the payload, how fast we moving, and then multiple if we need it. Right. >> Right. So, this is now like a strategic advantage for us. It confirms that we can actually do this. >> All the things we've seen in all these asteroid movies, some of which they just tried to send a put a drill. I think Armageddon, they tried to drill and then
47:10blow it up and but then it just created thousands of pieces that still can't Armageddon was incorrect. >> Right. It's less Okay. It's less Hollywood. There's no big nuclear explosions in space, but I just want to live. Right. >> Right. And we just need to nudge it. We just need to hit it. It sideswipe it a little bit. Yeah, exactly. >> Go in the other direction. >> Yeah, it's like a hockey puck, right? Just like, you know, you just move it out of the way. Um, the Near Earth Orbiter Surveyor. So, this thing is NASA's next generation space-based infrared telescope. It's going to launch in 2027 in September, and it's designed to detect dark asteroids that are not visible by groundbased optical telescopes for whatever reason. Sometimes they're coming right at us from the sun. They're like in our orbit,
47:52things like that. So, that's what this surveyor is going to do. that's going to give us more and more, >> you know, just in case some some random crap happens. >> I want to note that the 2013 Russia example that we talked about because some of the questions might be like, "Oh, well, planetary defense, we already know where all this stuff is, so we'll be fine anyway." That 2013 one >> came in it came out of nowhere and no one saw it. >> Yeah. And it was super alarming cuz I was like, I thought you guys had this together, >> right? And and so planetary defense is not We are a single point of failure species. I think I think we have I think NASA says that we've got all of the um all of the like really bad ones like the
48:32dinosaur impact type ones probably under control but still like I like the one the one on Russia right if if that had not exploded out in >> right >> 10 you know whatever the altitude like that could have been really bad that could have taken out a small city. >> Yeah. >> I don't want that either. >> Right. Right. Because the other flip side of this which is just sort of an interesting dynamic in the world we live in today which is uh relevant is I think this is actually the um this is the plot to Paradise the Hulu show. >> Yeah. >> Where it was an external object that was coming in um like a comet or an asteroid
49:14>> and it triggered nuclear war because of its like existential context. So like if something has impact and then there's misin like there's not good information sharing about what the thingy. >> Yeah. I mean we're going to war for a lot less you know and so it just creates you know planetary defense is really important. We we you know we are not well equipped to survive a massive impact. >> No. So we I'd rather not have it. And we now have at least a baseline to be able to provide the defense industry the
AstrophysicsOrbital MechanicsPlanetary DefensePrecision Measurement