The Sky at Night S25E07 · Bombardment from Space

Overview

What are the chances of the Earth being hit by an asteroid - another and much smaller world orbiting the Sun? Just over 40 years ago the Earth was nearly in collision with an asteroid called Hermes. Statistically the danger of a collision is slight, but by no means nil. In America the NASA authorities have announced plans for destroying any approaching asteroid with a nuclear missile. Can we predict the possibility of a collision? In this programme Patrick Moore discusses the whole question of asteroid collisions with Dr David Hughes of Sheffield University.

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Subtitles

Episodes

1. 1 1. The 200-inch Telescope at Mount1981-01-11Palomar Patrick Moore visits Mount Palomar in South California to see the great 200-inch telescope, and talks to the scientists who use the largest working telescope in the world.
2. 2 2. The Sword of Orion1981-02-08The Orion nebula is one of the most famous objects in the sky. It is visible with the naked eye as a hazy patch in Orion's sword; small telescopes show it well, but we now know tha
3. 3 3. Mr Herschel's Planet1981-03-08Patrick Moore tells the story of William Herschel, the obscure Hanoverian army bandsman whose discovery with a home-made telescope of the planet Uranus doubled the size of the know
4. 4 4. The Spring Sky1981-04-05What can be seen in the night sky this month? Patrick Moore describes the stars which are on view during April; he also shows the latest maps of Saturn's satellites drawn up from
5. 5 5. 'In the Beginning.... '1981-05-03In the crystal-clear atmosphere of La Palma in the Canary Islands the new Northern Hemisphere Observatory is being built. This observatory, a joint international project, is design
6. 6 6. Neptune - the Mysterious Giant1981-05-31Neptune, the outermost of the giant planets, has been known for well over a century, but our knowledge of it is still meagre. With its gaseous surface, its quick rotation and its l
7. 7 7. Bombardment from Space1981-06-26What are the chances of the Earth being hit by an asteroid - another and much smaller world orbiting the Sun? Just over 40 years ago the Earth was nearly in collision with an aster
8. 8 8. The Summer Sky1981-07-27During summer evenings many interesting constellations are on view. There are also some spectacular double stars, most of them are binary systems in which the components are physic
9. 9 9. The Perseids1981-08-23Meteors, or shooting stars, space debris shed by comets travelling round the sun, can produce brilliant displays and the Perseids, seen each year between 27 July and 17 August, are
10. 10 10. Voyager 2: A Second Opinion of Saturn1981-09-21On 25 August the American spacecraft Voyager 2 made its pass of Saturn, and told us more about the unexpectedly complicated ring-system, the surface of the Planet, and the puzzling
11. 11 11. A Tribute to Sir Bernard Lovell1981-10-18Three weeks ago Professor Sir Bernard Lovell retired as Director of the radio astronomy observatory at Jodrell Bank, where the 250-foot 'dish' opened up new methods of studying the
12. 12 12. The Autumn Sky1981-11-15Pegasus, the flying horse, is the main autumn constellation - but do you know where to find it? Can you see Mars now - and if so. where is it? Where should one look for the Great S
13. 13 13. The Star of Bethlehem1981-12-13For almost 2,000 years, the Star of Bethlehem has been regarded as a major mystery. What was the Star of Bethlehem? Was it the planet Venus, an exploding star, a comet, or a groupi