For all the intrinsic interest that the Moon and Mars hold for scientists, there's one element that puts asteroids in their own class: Neither of the former two, at least, are likely to hit Earth anytime in the foreseeable future.
Over the last year, NASA has been studying how to send a mission to an asteroid on a near (but not necessarily collision-prone) approach to Earth, under the theory that a manned mission could help researchers understand even more about these so-called "near earth objects" (NEOs) than would a robotic mission like the current Dawn spacecraft.
Space.com has posted a detailed animated walk-through of what such a mission would look like, based on NASA proposals. It's worth a look-see, if only to get a sense of the flexibility of the next-generation spacecraft being developed for the planned Moon missions.
The mission, using the technology being developed for the Constellation lunar exploration program, might see two separate launches, one lifting a booster segment carrying a surface access module, the other a crew vehicle.
The two pieces would link up in Earth orbit, then boost themselves into a rendezvous orbit with the target asteroid.
Once there, the surface access module would separate, carrying astronauts into contact with the hunk of space rock. Because gravity would be so minimal, the approach would less a landing than a
"docking," the video says. Harpoon tethers would fix the landing craft to the surface, and astronauts could use these tethers to hold on to as they sampled the region at the base of the craft.
To leave, the top portion of the landing craft would separate, leaving the harpoon-tethered base behind as a robotic science science station, and astronauts would return to the main capsule, and head back to
Earth.
So far, this is a proposal, not a plan. The information coming back from Dawn over the next decade will help add to scientists'
understanding of asteroids. But some see these space rocks as a possible source of resources to be tapped, or even stepping stones to locales farther out in the solar system – so don't bet on this idea going away for long.
Bootprints on Asteroids [Space.com]
(Image Credit: NASA/Digital Space)
