Help Save the Moon

On Friday, NASA is planning to crash into the moon. I'm just wondering: who gave them permission to crash into the moon? Not once, but twice. The rocket and satellite will smash into the moon at 5600 mph (more than seven times the speed of sound). The size of the explosion will be equal to that of 1.5 tons of TNT and will release 772,000 pounds of lunar dirt into a 6.2 mile high spray of debris, NASA'S own version of shock and awe, in a purported experiment to see if any ice or water is released. I'm just wondering, who signed the paper? Who did the risk assessment? I mean, what if something goes wrong?

It's a big explosion. Suffice it to say that any amateur astronomer west of the Mississippi with a home telescope will be able to view it from their backyard.

I could say something scientifically lame and ask, "What if it gets thrown off its axis?" or something funny and suggest something (that I actually sort of believe), like, "What if it somehow throws off the astrology?" Or that we're not risking -- as we have the earth with continued experiments of this kind -- sending the solar system out of balance.

The irony is that one of the purposes of the experiment is to assess whether there is any water on the moon and is it worthwhile to send another manned mission to the moon. If we'd just send up two guys with a bucket and shovels, we wouldn't have to bomb the moon at all.

I'm not a big fan of explosions, anyway. In Iraq or Afghanistan or the South Pole of the Moon. But who does have a territorial prerogative there?

Who has jurisdiction? Who has the right to say that it's okay to blow up a crater on the moon? Or Jupiter? Or Saturn, for that matter? If we think there is water there, how do we know we're not affecting some life form, as well? It sort of reminds me of two kids in a backyard with a firecracker that they don't really know how to set off.

It's causing great excitement in the astronomy sector. NASA is running a live broadcast on its website (wonder if they're selling ads). A NASA spokesman announced, "It's going to be pretty cool." The Fiske Planetarium in Boulder is serving free coffee and bagels. "People like explosions," the Planetarium director is quoted as saying, "and this is going to excite them."

Well, I for one, don't like explosions. Call me a pacifist, call me cautious, call me an environmentalist, or call me something worse, I don't really care.

But, we've set up a Twitter Page: http://twitter.com/helpsavethemoon . In the hopes that we can convince NASA not to try any further experiments of this kind! Join us.

 

 

Comments

[OOWBMan]

Is she serious about this or is she joking?

[S Templar]

I don't understand why Amy is so concerened about a 1.5 ton explosion on the Moon. The atomic bomb dropped on Nagasaki, Japan in August of 1945 was about 21 kilotons of TNT. After performing a little math one finds that 21 kilotons equals 21000 tons. If I recall my basic math, 1.5 is drastically less than 21000.

So Amy. It would seem to me if something was going to throw off astrology or send the solar system out of balance; it would be a 21000 ton explosion not a 1.5 ton explosion. But seeing that that hasn't
happened, I figure we're safe. Actually, I'm a little more concerned about what transpires on this hunk of rock versus some 1.5 ton explosion on the Moon.

[gunnergoz]

No wonder our educational system is the laughing stock of much of the civilized world.

[D-A-G-O-N]

I am shocked beyond words.

Lets have a look at an extremely useful several hundred kilo TNT explosion on earth:

http://www.pond5.com/stock-footage/491466/huge-explosion-on-mountaintop-mine-hd.html

Oh gods, a few of those explosions in canada and I'll be a leo!

These detonations occur on earth on a daily basis. The earth weighs 6,000,000,000,000 ,000,000,000,000 kilograms. That is a 6 with 24 zeroes. The moon weighs a bit less though at 7,347,700,­000,000,00­0,000,000 kilo. That is a 7 with 22 zeroes, sort of.

The Moon's diameter is 3,474 kilometres, a little more than a quarter of that of the Earth. Thus, the Moon's surface area is less than a tenth that of the Earth (about a quarter the Earth's land area, approximately as large as Russia, Canada, and the United States combined), and its volume is about 2 percent that of Earth. (ctd)

[fatman1954]

You know, the level of ignorance I am seeing here is appalling. First of all, this is far from the first satelite to crash on to the moon. Just this year both China and Japan crashed satellites on to the moon. And think about the six moon landings. Just what to you think happened to the lunar modules the astronauts used to get back into lunar orbit. One for certain was crashed back on to the moon on purpose and to the best of my knowledge, none of the other five are still in lunar orbit so just what do you think happened to them. Hey, and guess what, the moon is still there! Luna masses billions of tons and is hit on a regular basis by asteroids much larger than any of these satellites without any problems. And as to who gave us permission to do this, just who were we supposed to ask? Maybe the next time you decide to express an opinion on a scientific evdeavour you just might try educating yourself just a little bit on the subject first.

[jwrock]

Hopefully Amy is in a tiny minority. Such sentimental conservatism seems out of place.

Everyone who believes in human progress should hope that men will eventually be able to profit from lunar resources.

[Wide Stance]

"Profit from lunar resources?" How conservative of you.

Lol.

[LaSirene]

I applaud the humor of this article.

AND despise the attitudes I see here amongst some of the posters. I am an afficionado of scientific exploration, while at the same time VERY AWARE of the current limitations of science. Since accepted scientific truth is constantly shifting, the very last thing scientists EVER need to be is arrogant or pretentious in terms of anything being definitive. Smugness in the face of ever shifting information is beyond hubris.

Yes, sometimes we humans decide that something is worth the risk. However, these days our planet has enough environmental catastrophes to deal with in relation to earthquakes, tidal waves, etc that it does seem like a LOT of extra research needed to be put in to determine the possible effect of shooting a projectile into an orbital body that effects so much on this planet.

Anybody who doesn't realize the import is just an idiot.

[Hopeington]

Bravo! I couldn't figure out how to say it but you did a very fine job. Thank you for giving my feelings some words.

[Sean Harrigan]

wrong. or maybe youre not serious. its hard to believe that you or any of these moonmuckrakers could possibly be speaking their true mind

naturally occurring collisions of this magnitude occur on the moon several times a month. how do you suppose the surface became completely cratered in the first place?

[JGatsby]

There is no arrogance or smugness here because there is no risk. Zero. Zilch. Nada. Things hit the moon with as much or greater impact ALL THE TIME. The moon has no atmosphere so asteroids that usually burn up in our atmosphere hit the moon. We also have a very, very well understood theory of gravity and the laws of motion that has been worked out since Newton and verified to in countless experiments (including every launch of a missile or rocket ever). A first year undergrad physics student could actually give you the exact impact of this projectile on the moon and show you that it won't impact the moon's orbit or the tides or anything using some straight forward math.

Anyone who doesn't understand this is, well I won't use the word idiot because that would be rude, uninformed.

[poomplet]

I haven't seen anyone giving props to a Howard Stern bit from about 5 years ago where he ad a Gov. Ahhnuld impersonator call in to discuss drafting a bill to blow up the moon.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FQdv2Ie_kXs (the Gov kicks in about 1:45)

It was hilarious...but even moreso after then little-known Joe Scarborough literally went on air to DENOUNCE the Governor for his proposal & how he mocked women in it: http://www.museumofhoaxes.com/hoax/weblog/permalink/schwarzenegger_blows_up_the_moon/

I forgot that was Joe...I'd love to see this thrown in his face if he ever seeks office!!

[Aether]

Earth first! (We'll screw the rest of the planets up later.)

The real question isn't if this particular test is dangerous to the Moon, it's: is ANYTHING humanity messes with safe? Just a tacit look at history will provide us with a resounding "No!"

I love the idiotic notion that most science advocates put forth: that we need to explore and ultimately colonize space, to learn more about the universe, and perhaps to ultimately save the human race from extinction. But if we can't preserve ourselves here, on our home planet, how do we expect to survive elsewhere?

The problem with humans is that we can't leave anything alone. If we did so, everything in nature would be fine, and take care of itself via natural stasis. We are so arrogant, that we think "improving," "fixing" and "refining" the natural world via technology is a boon to all creation. But the truth is, every human endeavor to make the Earth more livable for us, has done nothing but make life easier (in the short term,) for humans, and a few other symbiotic creatures who benefit from this. Life itself doesn't benefit at all, and it certainly doesn't need our meddling. We haven't done a thing to make the world, or the universe better, outside of our supremely finite human perception. All we have done really is create long-term waste and toxicity only to make life more tolerable for us on a short-term basis.

[KevinNevada]

Aether, it's you who are foolish. We will only save the Earth by using our knowledge and technology. Retreating into ignorance and fear will only leave us in on a dead-end path.
If you truly think that anything touched by our species ends badly, then you are welcome to remove yourself, in any manner you choose. I happen to believe that we and other intelligent life (wherever it is, out there) are the universe's method of knowing itself. We have an obligation to survive, to thrive and to spread out as far as possible.
Those of us who advocate the settlement of space do actually realize that "we need to explore and ultimately colonize space, to learn more about the universe, and perhaps to . . . save the human race from extinction". Thank you for phrasing it so well! The resources and energy available to us, just within the nearer portion of this Solar System would make the entire human race comfortable and could remove our dirtier activities from this precious biosphere. That's a very exciting prospect and worth pursuing, for our sakes and for the sake of all life on this planet.

[kilgore trout]

OK, folks.... It's the next day. Moon is still there and still unblemished. In fact, the impact plume was much more subtle than expected. Everyone can relax now.

[ricehq]

How do YOU know. What about the AFTER effects? Huh?

[kilgore trout]

I'm going to assume you're kidding.

[martinchill]

question for the smart folks - how much of the moon would have to be blown off to change its orbit? and if it got smaller, would it drift farther away from earth or be pulled closer?

[Peridolius]

It's already drifting away from us at about an inch a year.

[martinchill]

interesting - is it due to the moon getting smaller or larger, or because we're not as cool as we used to be?

[fatman1954]

Martin, I don't know the answer to the first part of your question beyond saying it all depends on how catastrophic the removal of material was. A big, REALLY BIG, meteor hit could both make Luna smaller and change its orbit but how much of either would depend on the size of the asteroid and the direction of the hit. As to the moon moving farther away, it already is doing so, at a very small fraction of an inch per year.

[elakdawalla]

I'm not exactly sure but I think that an impact large enough to appreciably change the Moon's orbit would have other effects (like big hunks of fiery ejecta flying in our direction) that would be a more immediate concern than the Moon's changed orbit.

[Team America]

I'm totally in favor of NASA nuking the moon. With enough good old-fashioned made in the USA firepower we can flip the moon the other way around and finally get a good look at "the dark side". It's about time we all confronted that...just ask your therapist.

[KevinNevada]

There is no 'dark side of the Moon'. As the Moon orbits the Earth it rotates relative to the Sun, about every 28 days. Every portion of the Moon except the deeper craters near the poles get sunshine for 12 to 15 days per rotation.
That's why NASA and other space agencies are scanning those deep craters at the poles. Water may well be found where the sun never shines to evaporate the deposits.

[Team America]

Crazy talk! It was one of the most popular albums of all time. I do agree that applying water where the sun never shines can indeed help remove the deposits.

[WorldofTomorrow420]

Personally i hope they do not find water. If they do, then someday there will be a mining operation up there to support a colony. For some reason, i don't want the moon to look like a strip mine - even though it is desolate and lifeless.

[fflyer]

Somehow I don't think this mission would get anyone's attention if it was instead the phenomenally more expensive probe to land softly on the moon and dig a hole in the ground to search for water or other elements. Explosions (which this really isn't, even) are scary. Well, unless you consider that seismologists use explosives in scientific study quite frequently, to say nothing of Mythbusters. I suggest those angry about this mission go investigate and picket the offices of the Geological Survey.

[D-A-G-O-N]

A sickening and pathetic fear and contempt for progress.

[bioluminescence]

The NASA mission should have been to Washington to get permission to reschedule the moonshot. If they got it they could have then reported finding intelligent life there.

[RepugsOut08]

NASA, Please Don't Bomb the Moon, by Henry Gibson

NASA, please don't bomb the moon
We need it every June
So, with our sweethearts, we can spoon
To "Moon River's" lilting tune
NASA, please don't bomb the moon ;)