2007-07-09 02:18:07 · 7 answers · asked by tracyterry 3 in Science & Mathematics ➔ Astronomy & Space
Actually this might be possible, but not to adviseable.
Asteroids are smaller than the Moon, and have little gravity. So the space ship would need some kind of screw anchors or other device to hold itself in position on the surface.
Also, asteroids are not necessarily round spheres like planets. And, they do not flow/fly smoothly through space. In fact, most of them tumble and twist as they pass through space. So, brief visits to the surface would be most precarious, to say the least. A lot of debris flies of of the surface of asteroids as they fly through space. So the space ship would likely be bombarded with all manner of space debris - maybe even even punctured or holed by it.
Last item on the list is the velocity of travel for particular asteroids...The space ship would need to accelerate to a velocity equal to that of the asteroid, then do a complex series of manuvers to match exactly the tumbling motion of the object in order to land on its surface. That would be a very large and complex effort.
2007-07-09 04:11:56 · answer #1 · answered by zahbudar 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Yes, it is indeed possible. The NEAR Shoemaker (unmanned) probe achieved a soft landing in 2001, even though it wasn't specifically designed to do so.
However, the real question might be "Would they be able to STAY on the asteroid?" As others imply, the gravity of an asteroid would be VERY weak. The slightest force could allow a landing craft or even the astronaut to drift off the surface, possibly into space, unless there were enough gravity to bring him or her back down!
So it CAN happen, not sure if it will. Might need to save manned landings for larger objects in the solar system.
2007-07-09 02:34:36 · answer #2 · answered by Sam84 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Yes, it should be. In fact, Japan has already attempted to send a lander to an asteroid; it wasn't successful, but it came close enough to tell us that success should have been possible under the correct circumstances. The asteroid just needs to be large enough for the spacecraft to land, and it would certainly help if the asteroid had enough gravity to keep the ship and its crew on the surface.
2007-07-09 02:20:10 · answer #3 · answered by DavidK93 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Yes, absolutely, NASA has intentionally crashed older probes onto asteroids. With that data they have determined, size, weight, and speed of an object to make a soft landing onto the body of an asteroid.
If you up to a challenge, here is the website for a real physic space flight simulator with thousands of extra add-ons to see what real and imaginary spacecraft can do and on different worlds. Be warned, this is NOT a shooting game, it is a real space simulator and the learning curve is extreme. It took me more than a month to get a spacecraft into Low Earth Orbit successfully. It is called Orbiter. Enjoy.
Oh, BTW it is totally free!!
Check out Wikipedia site on orbiter, good information.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orbiter_(sim)
2007-07-09 02:29:26 · answer #4 · answered by Apachejohn 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
If the scientists estimate the speed of the moving object (here asteroid) and the exact time of the landing required, then yes. Size does matter in this case, as the above person said :)
2007-07-09 02:24:00 · answer #5 · answered by sr 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
most asteroids are smaller than a grain of sand... but if they found a big enough asteroid they prolly could.
2007-07-09 02:20:50 · answer #6 · answered by ~*^ :)^*~ 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Duh, of course you can. Haven't you seen Armageddon?
2007-07-09 02:26:33 · answer #7 · answered by Curt D 1 · 0⤊ 2⤋