ESA Meteorite Impact Exercise

After the Chelyabinsk meteorite, it became clear that the threat of a collision with a large space body is quite real. Experts of the European Space Agency believe that you need to prepare for protection in advance. On November 24-25, 2014, ESA conducted a two-day Space Situational Awareness (SSA) exercise . Conditions were simulated with the sudden discovery of an asteroid heading toward Earth. These are the first tests of the ESA of this kind.

The exercises modeled the situation for asteroids with a diameter of 12 meters (less than the 19-meter Chelyabinsk meteorite of 2013) to 38 meters (approximately as the Tungussky meteorite of 1908), which enter the atmosphere at a speed of 12.5 km / s.

The experts discussed what actions should be taken at five critical points in time:
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• 30 days before the collision;
• 26 days before the collision;
• 5 days before the collision;
• 3 days before the collision;
• 1 hour before the collision.

Scientists recognize that collision energy depends on many factors. In addition to speed and size, it is also the meteorite mass, chemical composition and angle of entry into the atmosphere. However, this should not stop the simulation of possible consequences.

The participants in the tests discussed how European organizations should respond to such a threat, with whom to share information and which one. It was decided that the mass, size, composition of the asteroid, as well as the approximate location of the impact into the Earth, can be predicted for three days about the collision. Thus, for three days the impact energy and possible consequences will become clear. Probably, precisely at this moment one can warn the local authorities and the population of the planet.

For comparison, the 2013 Chelyabinsk meteorite weighing about 12,000 tons and 19 meters in diameter entered the atmosphere at an acute angle at a speed of about 18.6 km / s and exploded at an altitude of 25-30 km, releasing energy equivalent to an explosion of 480 kilotons of trotyl. The shock wave damaged 7,300 buildings, resulting in minor injuries to 1,500 people. Most of the victims are curious, who looked out of the windows and were cut by pieces of broken glass.

In an emergency, the main task of the ESA is to provide local authorities with information about the place and time of the strike, as well as other useful scientific information about the alleged consequences of the disaster.

ESA experts from Germany and Switzerland took part in the exercise. In 2015, it is planned to repeat the event with the invitation of experts from other countries. The program involved international agencies and organizations, including the UN.