Aphelion

An interesting piece by astronaut Russell Schweikhart, pointing out that you don't need to destroy an asteroid or deflect it laterally -- a push from behind will alter its orbit just as effectively.

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/10/26/opini ... &th&emc=th

Nice article, Robert. There's a nice book about this sort of thing: "Mining the Sky," by John S. Lewis.

Of course, we may extinguish ourselves first . . . I've seen some scientists saying that up to 25% of all Earth's plant and animal species are at risk of extinction already . . .