Monday, July 04, 2005

Outer Space Porno: Deep Impact

I'll write about the big move tomorrow. For now, I have something else on my mind. Perhaps it's because I've been watching the Twilight Zone marathon all day, but I have some concerns about NASA's Deep Impact project in which a projectile was fired at the comet Tempel 1 in an effort to discover facts about the birth of the universe.

Some quotes from various articles I've read on the net:
  • Little is known about comet anatomy, so it wasn't clear exactly what would happen.That's reassuring.
  • In what scientists say is a coincidence, the spacecraft shares the same name, Deep Impact, as the 1998 movie about a comet that hurtles toward Earth.Coincidence?! I thought it was named that on purpose! Coincidence?!
  • Scientists emphasized that there was no chance that the mission's Impactor could destroy Comet Tempel 1 or put it into a hazardous orbit.Somehow that does not make me feel better. A blanket declaration of 'no chance' makes me hope that someone at NASA was knocking on wood when they made that statement.

My main fear is that we are going to create some sort of cosmic tsunami. How could this possibly not have an affect on Earth? The solar system? The entire universe?

I visualize the other citizens of the Milky Way watching us saying, "What the f**k is that Earth trash up to now? Honey, come look at this. Now those assholes are blowing up a comet. I guess they got tired of blowing up each other."

8 comments:

Laurie said...

Glod - The probe was the size of a washing machine while the comet is the size of Manhattan island. So, relatively speaking, the probe was small compared to the size of the comet...but still.

Lorna said...

As usual, your viewpoint caused me to take a second look at something I'd found reasonably acceptable. Now, I'm thinking I ought to use the Canadarm to send a good slap up the side of the head of NASA. But the burning question is how did that get to be the burning question?

Unknown said...

You did not mention the possibility of angering a theocracy that worships comets. You'd think we'd have learned from the results of our ignorance of Islam but no...

OldHorsetailSnake said...

I wouldn't worry about it, Laurie. I been shooting .22 bullets into the sun for 50 years, and nothin' bad has ever happened.

OldRoses said...

Earth trash . . . hahahahahahahaha

Laurie said...

Lorna - I love to spread paranoia.

Comfort Addict - We'll never learn.

Old Horsetail - Okay, I feel a little better then.

Old Roses - I'm sure we're the black sheep of the universe family.

Carol Davidson said...

It's okay that we did it, because I heard that the Comet had WMD's and wasn't complying with the United Cosmos weapons inspections. Kickin' a little comet ass will show the universe who is boss.

Laurie said...

Abby - That's what I'm afraid of.