Cuts cast doubt on asteroid plan
Plans to more precisely plot the orbit of an asteroid with a small chance of hitting Earth in 2036 may be badly hit by funding cuts to a US radar facility.
Radar measurements set to be made in January 2013 by the Arecibo Observatory in Puerto Rico, US, could help rule out an impact by asteroid Apophis.
But the cuts mean Arecibo needs an extra $2m-$3m a year to continue.
If not, the observations planned for 2011-2013 will have to be abandoned, the facility’s director told BBC News.
Dr Michael Nolan said he was “moderately optimistic” that the money could be found.
But he pointed out that Arecibo was the only observatory in the world sensitive enough for the task.
“If we measure [Apophis] in 2013, there is something like a 95% chance that we’ll be able to prove that it can’t hit the Earth in 2036,” he explained.
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Over the years I have been asked repeatedly about what prompted me to get involved with a subject like the paranormal and also why did I start writing books about it; fortunately the answer is reasonably straightforward. It ties into a lifetime’s fascination with all things paranormal and supernatural, and from my perspective the words are entirely synonymous.
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