Anybody else see the story of NASA's event this weekend? A satellite will shoot an 850 pound copper pellet at a comet and then film the resulting impact (expected crater about the size of a football stadium). The scientific explanation is that it will add tremendous information to what we know about comets, but I think it's an excuse for NASA's big bore shooters to punch a big hole in something. Somehow I think when NASA is run by women, this kind of project won't make it through. (Q: What, you want $350 million to shoot a giant bullet at an iceball? A: Sure, it'll be cool!)

Bob

Deep impact (to say the least!)

8Mb Video

It will be a failure unless it exits the off side.

quote:

Originally posted by Borealis Bob:
It will be a failure unless it exits the off side.

Has anyone calculated the sectional density?

Is the launch device CRF or PF? you don't want to be shooting comets with just anything you know.

They can be bloody dangerous when wounded.

Forget about the SD. The impact speed was 33733fps!!! NASA obviously realises the value of speed if you want to kill something big and heavy.

quote:

Originally posted by Gerard:
Forget about the SD. The impact speed was 33733fps!!! NASA obviously realises the value of speed if you want to kill something big and heavy.

But from the few photos I saw they did not get complete penetration...

quote:

Originally posted by Charles_Helm:

quote:

Originally posted by Gerard:
Forget about the SD. The impact speed was 33733fps!!! NASA obviously realises the value of speed if you want to kill something big and heavy.

But from the few photos I saw they did not get complete penetration...

...well, that's because they used CRF instead of PUSHFEED. It's less accurate...

1.417e10 ft/lbs

Was it a flat point solid or a cup point solid? Did they talk to anyone at AR in the big bore forum about the task?

I think this is a classic case of using a too-light projectile at too high a velocity. Low penetration, and a dramatic entry wound. No exit, and the comet is still orbting aournd wounded. How is NASA planning to follow up this one? They need to make a plan.

I saw on the news last night that NASA is now being sued for several million$ by some astrolger. She claims her horoscope has been altered by the changed orbit of the comet after impact.

quote:

Originally posted by Gerard:
I saw on the news last night that NASA is now being sued for several million$ by some astrolger. She claims her horoscope has been altered by the changed orbit of the comet after impact.

From Reuters (via Yahoo! News):

A Russian astrologist who says NASA has altered her horoscope by crashing a spacecraft into a comet is suing the U.S. space agency for damages of $300 million, local media reported Monday.

NASA deliberately crashed its probe, named Deep Impact, into the Tempel 1 comet to unleash a spray of material formed billions of years ago which scientists hope will shed new light on the composition of the solar system.

"It is obvious that elements of the comet's orbit, and correspondingly the ephemeris, will change after the explosion, which interferes with my astrology work and distorts my horoscope," Izvestia daily quoted astrologist Marina Bai as saying in legal documents submitted before Monday's collision.

A spokeswoman for a Moscow district court said initial preparations for the case were underway but could not say when the hearing would begin. NASA representatives in Moscow were unavailable for comment.

MOSCOW (AP) - NASA's mission that sent a space probe smashing into a comet raised more than cosmic dust - it also brought a lawsuit from a Russian astrologer.

Marina Bai has sued the U.S. space agency, claiming the Deep Impact probe that punched a crater into the comet Tempel 1 late Sunday "ruins the natural balance of forces in the universe," the newspaper Izvestia reported Tuesday. A Moscow court has postponed hearings on the case until late July, the paper said.

Scientists say the crash did not significantly alter the comet's orbit around the sun and said the experiment does not pose any danger to Earth.

The probe's comet crash sent up a cloud of debris that scientists hope to examine to learn how the solar system was formed.

Bai is seeking damages totaling $300 million - the approximate equivalent of the mission's cost - for her "moral sufferings," Izvestia said, citing her lawyer Alexander Molokhov. She earlier told the paper that the experiment would "deform her horoscope."

NASA representatives in Russia could not be reached for comment on the case.

quote:

Originally posted by Charles_Helm:
[QUOTE]Originally posted by Gerard:
I saw on the news last night that NASA is now being sued for several million$ by some astrolger. She claims her horoscope has been altered by the changed orbit of the comet after impact.

Wouldn't her horoscope have predicted it..?

-Steve

Yes, but everyone is missing the point here. Now the little green guys will see that we really shoot something into space. Everything was OK so long as we kept it here on our little rock. I guess they did not see or just don't remember the movie "The Day The Earth Stood Still". Even in that movie the space guy said everything was OK with the other worlds so long as we kept to our own planet. Now the proverbial cat is out of the bag. We are all in for it now.

Mike's right, now that they see we can take the caos off planet we are in for it. Better get NorthFork on the line and see about special runs of bullets for this and somebody get some barrels Tooled up for NASA, the Martians are coming.

Red

quote:

Originally posted by Dago Red:
the Martians are coming.

Red

Hmmm.... Martian Hunting.... Someone better tell Saeed we're gonna need a new forum!

Anybody know what the trophy fee is on a wounded and lost comet?

465H&H

quote:

the space guy said everything was OK with the other worlds so long as we kept to our own planet. Now the proverbial cat is out of the bag. We are all in for it now.

What is the minimum recomended caliber for "space guys"?
From what I've seen on TV they should be considered dangerous game...

Not just rophy fees, think of the weight of a box of 50 rounds!!