Marrying asteroid defense and asteroid mining

From: spacesettlers@yahoogroups.com
[mailto:spacesettlers@yahoogroups.com] On Behalf Of Robert

--- In spacesettlers@yahoogroups.com, "Combs, Mike"
>
> > Actually, it occurs to me that might be an advantage to the focused
> > solar mirror approach. One could have a consistently vectored
> thrust
> > without first de-spinning the asteroid.
>
> problem with that is the vectors will cancel themselves out,

Not sure I'm following you. If there's confusion, this is the proposal
where a solar concentrator creates a hot-spot on the asteroid which
begins outgassing (there might even be a vaporization of silicate
matter, depending on the area of the array), producing a rocket effect.

> unless the mirror is floating free of the asteroid,

Yeah, that was how I was visualizing it. One would need something to
overcome the light pressure; perhaps ion engines might do.

> but with
> the asteroid changing its course on a constant basis, keeping
> the mirror focused would not be easy. I'm afraid that would
> make it rather impractical.

I think it might be easier to keep the mirror focused than to deal with
another problem. I heard somebody assert that the hot-spot would spray
out vaporized material in all directions, including the direction of the
mirror. This material would coat the mirror and substantially reduce
its effectiveness before too long.

My favored method will always remain mass-driver. I think I'm most
attracted to the idea that one can be ejecting the least-valuable parts
of the asteroid as reaction mass, preserving the most-valuable.

Regards,

Mike Combs