Energy Deposition in an Asteroid-like Target from a Stand-Off Nuclear Burst

C. S. Plesko, R. P. Weaver, R. R. C. Clement, P. A. Bradley, W. F. Huebner, and L. Conlon, Los Alamos National Laboratory (plesko@lanl.gov), Southwest Research Institute Large asteroid and comet impacts on Earth are rare yet preventable natural disasters. There are many outstanding questions about how to prevent an impact once a hazardous object is found. Nuclear munitions are currently thought to be the most efficient and technologically feasible method of delivering an impact-preventing impulse to a PHO. However, there are still major uncertainties about the response of PHOs to a nuclear burst and the most effective and safest ways to use nuclear munitions for impact hazard mitigation.