Solar furnace could save Earth: "White Sands Missile Range test facilities are being used by scientists to develop methods for saving the world.
While the White Sands Missile Range Solar Furnace was originally built to test the survivability of Army systems and materials against the nuclear threat of the cold war, the facility is serving other purposes as well.
While initially designed for research and testing relating to nuclear survivability in July 2009, the furnace was used to test a theory on saving the world. A threat that has quietly hung above earth for millions of years in that of a meteorite large enough that its impact with earth would result in a disaster of a magnitude that it would cause the extinction of humanity.
The theory, presented by Purdue University Geophysicist Jay Melosh, was that should a meteor be spotted approaching earth then a spacecraft equipped with a system similar to that of the solar furnace could be launched to intercept the meteor.
Once it arrives at the meteor the spacecraft would deploy its system and use the power of the sun to superheat a spot on the meteor. The heat would cause that spot on the meteor to melt and fracture, throwing off small bits of debris; the force of which would act like a small rocket slowly pushing the meteor and changing its course."
