If you have the technology to push big space rocks onto a collision course, you ...

stoperaticless · 2024-09-04T19:00:30 1725476430

Interception is a different process and usually it is more difficult.

Example of it being different process: bullets are accelerated by gun powder, but stopped by various armor.

Example of increased dificulty: interception rockets have higher demands on speed and agility. (If somebody tries to evade, you have to be faster)

jjk166 · 2024-09-05T14:51:23 1725547883

The difference there being that a bullet's velocity is significantly increased by the gun, not simply redirected.

The problem of intercepting an asteroid heading towards you is exactly the same problem as intercepting an asteroid heading along any other orbit. Again, if you can redirect an asteroid, you can redirect an asteroid.

A more apt analogy would be a sword fight, where the counter to someone swinging their sword is swinging your own sword to redirect it.

stoperaticless · 2024-09-07T21:11:02 1725743462

Good point, but I am not ready to concede. (At least not fully)

Important limitation can be earlyness of detection, and equipment delivery/deployment speed, and redirection rate/speed.

Attacker could work with slow equipment deployment and redirection rate (maybe take years), but defender will need certain ratios between detection esrlyness and speedy deployment of equipment to start the deflection.

And if I’m mr Evil, I would pass the commet through some gravity assists to increase the speed - to bring the example closer to the bullet case.

explorigin · 2024-09-04T17:29:24 1725470964

As long as you can see them in time.