Asteroids: The Bad, the Good and the Ugly

Until recently, asteroids were thought to be unlikely to cause us harm. However, the possibility of an asteroid hitting the Earth with fatal consequences has gradually become one of the essential problems to face for both scientists and amateur astronomers. Every night, observatories all around the world work to detect even the slightest deviations in the trajectories of asteroids that could possibly veer onto a collision course with the Earth. NASA researchers use, among other instruments, a specialised cannon which enables them to simulate an asteroid falling to Earth and estimate the extent of potential calamity. Billions of years ago, it is likely asteroids covered with a layer of ice impacted the Earth's dry surface and thereby created the perfect conditions for life on the planet. The small objects orbiting the Sun can therefore be seen to embody both the beginning and the end of life on Earth. The documentary captures a shift in understanding the importance of asteroid research, beginning with initial scepticism and ending with a mission to the surface of an asteroid planned for 2025. This mission should uncover many secrets beyond what a telescope or a robotic spacecraft are capable of revealing. (Academia Film Olomouc)