Are we safe?

That is what even I thought before this incident but now after coming to know that approx 1000 people are injured in Russia and there was not even a warning, I feel, there is a misunderstanding..we are still in semi-stone age. The only difference is in stone age, such meteors wouldn't have affected humans because that time they were less in number and they used to live in caves and now we live in houses and that's why we're affected.

I think it was the same thing back in the stone age. The difference is now we know about them and understand the devastation they can cause on earth. It is what it is. Remember, meteors have been around longer then we have. And if this is going to happen, we are limited in what we can do to avoid them.

We do have an options available to avoid such issues but we are not focused and willing to handle such situations. Unfortunately, we've left ourselves on luck.

Hi Mantis, How are you? I'm not concerned about the fact whether they are able to track such stones or not, I'm concerned about the fact that whether they are able to protect us or not. What's the point of having so much money spent on hubble and other things when we can't save ourselves from small stones. Do you really think it would have created mass panic if they had have announced that there will be a small meteor shower? At least they could have tried to evacuate that area, it would have been great to save thousands of people rather than letting them suffer like this. It's not the right attitude.

I think they can’t protect us, current science technologies has no ability to intercept Asteroids, Comets, and Meteors, even prayers can’t divert the collision course to earth’s crust. What happened to Russia Meteor incident only proves that even Moon is never set footed by man. Spending millions of dollars for hubble and kepler space telescopes is just a viewing telescope, we are currently not advance. 40 years from now maybe they have the technology on how to send a droid there on alien stone and instead of intercepting it by force, they will do it by neutralizing the speed of the meteor to slow down till absolutely zero acceleration and that is the time to pull the asteroid to safely land on our moon… Or let that asteroid stays stationary there for future use, and in time if there is another asteroid, comet or meteor incoming from a different direction they will use it… What will happen is a previously captured asteroid to send and set as a shield to block new visiting comet with ambition to land on earth with the help of a pushing-pulling remote control droid.

Not a referral link but here is the SMALL meteor shower in the Philippines December 13, 2012 and they detect it: http://newsinfo.inquirer.net/323067/meteor-showers-peak-on-thursday-and-friday-pagasa but to BIG meteor will surely land on Russia can't?

Hi chiyosan, I was taught in schools that we have telescopes that can show you things outside this solar system and now a days, so many amateurs have got telescopes and they are also watching these skies, then how come we completely missed this one? Something that injured 1000 people? Tracking a few stones approaching our planet and informing people for that is not big deal, especially in 21st century, this is what my mindset was before this incident but now it has changed.

found it http://www.foxnews.com/science/2013/02/15/russian-meteorite-why-didnt-scientists-see-it-coming/

http://www.foxnews.com/science/2013/02/15/russian-meteorite-why-didnt-scientists-see-it-coming/ foundit

Thanks for sharing the URL, it's really an alarming incident for us. When our scientists can't track a flying stone, how do we assume that they are really capable of saving lives on earth from external threat. A century back we were in the hands of god and this incident confirms that still we are.

Well, maybe it is nit that easy to mak we an apparatus thay could exactly confirm the trajectory of the meteors. The atmosoheric pressure, size and speed are all factors that need to be considered.

Hi Jenny1015, If they could not divert it, at least they could have given a warning to people in Russia about this, that would have certainly protected so many people from getting injured. This incident clearly shows that these guys didn't even notice the path of this meteor. This just shows the dumbness of our so called advanced science, what's the use of hell lot of theories in Physics when we can't even notice when a stone is approaching us?

In the future is not a force field idea but a drone that capable of slowing down (Like a very small pilot boat capable of pulling a large size Aircraft Carrier Ship) even a ten kilometer wide asteroid while in a completely zero state speed, now it’s the time that the man-made droid will pull that giant asteroid to place near our moon and by way of chopping it to pieces and steal all important parts to make building of domes for our astronauts to temporary stay safe in Moon Stations…. maybe in year 4000 where human technologies are very awesome and to consider advance. Asteroids that is rich in iron, gold, or other precious natural resources to think about.

If this is how we are supposed to react to this kind of incidents, then in that case, we should not invest any money in science, rather, we should make sure that all the scientists go to their religious temples/mosques/churches etc and pray their for our civilization, rather than wasting time in labs on god know what.

It is not the fault of NASA and Scientists, the agency and its scientists are not equate with the necessary counter measure to steer asteroid away from hitting earth in this near head on collision course. The agency is only empowered to study and research on small part of our universe planetary objects, not funded with plenty of $$$ from various world government to come out with a project to be ready for such a gigantic threat from outer space like asteroid, comet or solar's corona mass ejection. Rather than blaming NASA or its scientists, it is actually the fault of various world governments that refuse to fund and authorize such a counter measure contingency project against external threat, they are more eager to spend money in building war machines to kill large population on earth internally than dealing with external threat, that shame is belong to them not the scientist or NASA, my friend!

The viable option i think will work to mitigate the immediate threat of a deadly impact on earth by a extremely large asteroid or meteorite that is coming head-on collision course is to have the ability to zap it or break it into smaller pieces outside our atmosphere before its arrival, in this way, making it less deadly in term of size and lessen its impact force. By to have such type of space weapon in orbit ready for the immediate external threat, world government need to fund such a project with $$$, not building more nuclear bombs and weapons to kill foreigners. Until those greedy fools begin to be able to see this danger from outer space, they will stop at nothing to build more weapon of war and nuclear bombs with the hope of annihilate large population of earth inhabitants before the asteroid or meteorite do, that is for sure. It is no doubt one day the earth will face a deadly impact with a huge external object when all the condition are right, you can bet on that.

Hi lampar, I agree with you on this, we are really fortunate this time, I read somewhere that in Russia it had hit the ground at a place very near to the plutonium storage, now what if it would have hit that storage. This time we were extremely lucky, all those things that people would have imagined for 21st Dec 2012, could be the fact by now had it hit some panic areas on earth. It's not something that we couldn't imagine, they have Hollywood movies on this subject and in reality, we don't even have a clue of what to do when a stone approaches our home? It's a shame on scientists and NASA if they can't even protect earth from showering stones.

Hi xanderkage, Welcome to myLot! Had it been some really complex phenomena, I wouldn't have this kind of question in my mind. I know there could be so many possibilities where our civilization can be in danger, however, this was a very basic incident which could have been handled easily. Generally, we blame the politicians that they don't work properly and hinder the growth of the country but here I see even scientists are just wasting our money and their own time.