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Comment by ClumsyPilot | Hacker News Reader

What's the cost of a nuclear missile (or X chosen method?) Whats the cost of NYC turning in a smoldering crater * 0.5% (or whatever)?

The cost of all rockets ever launched is a pittance compared to NYC real estate

Also there is a project for a space telescooe spesifically designed to locate asteroids, its not that difficult or even expensive.

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sentinel_Space_Telescope

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Having nuclear missiles ready at all times, all over the world (near populated areas) is a risk on its own... In a politically stable world without conflicts, sure, but we haven't had that kind of world for centuries...

That's true, but we already have that. There's nukes all over the place. Not in all countries, but many.

> Not in all countries, but many.

In 9 out of 195 countries.

Why would they have to be stored near populated areas for this purpose?

Even if you were gonna hit the meteor during significant downward trajectory (which seems unlikely), that would still have to be done at quite a distance from the impact location.

Also wondering when there was ever a "politically stable world without conflicts"

Would even the largest nuke do much to a 50m-wide chunk of iron traveling at 20+ km/s?

Earth travels around the Sun at 30 km/s, delay an asteroid by 4 minutes and it will miss completely.

If your nuke can slow the asteroid from 20km/s to 19.9 km/s, then you need to nuke it 6 days before it hits earth.

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