Why We're Better than the Dinosaurs

 

NASA reports that, "As of March 31, 2015, 12480 Near-Earth objects have been discovered. Some 872 of these NEOs are asteroids with a diameter of approximately 1 kilometer or larger. Also, 1573 of these NEOs have been classified as Potentially Hazardous Asteroids (PHAs)"

Now, I don't say this to scare you, but to make you aware. These 1573 PHAs are still relatively far away from crossing points with Earth (4.6 million miles or less); however, there is plenty of room for error which is why it's still important. As of right now, NASA has nothing that will stop an unsuspecting asteroid from hitting Earth. The one thing that distinguishes the true genius of a species from the rest is the ability to prevent one's own extinction, especially when you have the means to do so. In other words, I like to think we can do better than the dinosaurs.

See the dinosaurs couldn't prevent their demise because of one key factor; they had no space program. Fortunately for us, we do! NASA's current plan is simply genius and it's called the Asteroid Redirect Mission. Instead of sending a giant missile to blow up an asteroid heading for Earth (cue Bruce Willis Armageddon jokes), we can simply send a spacecraft and effect its orbit using gravity. If we were to blow it up, then the problem becomes much worse. We now have to worry about millions of smaller pieces flying in multiple directions towards Earth. 

By gravitational attraction, we can use the spacecraft to pull the asteroid (like a tractor) out of the trajectory of Earth. Take a look at the video to see the specifics - it's pretty awesome stuff. This is something that's not out of the realm of possibility. NASA can certainly do this with proper funding and support (no Bruce Willis needed).