Can you tell me what do comets and whales have in common? For starters, both of them have tails, and you can use a harpoon to reel ’em in – or at least NASA thinks so where the comet is concerned. Engineers at NASA’s Goddard Space Flight Center are currently developing a harpoon gun which is said to be able to spear the heart of the comet, while ensuring it manages to pick up a sample of subsurface dirt in its tip, reeling the precious cargo back into the hovering craft once it has done its dirty job. What kind of monstrous harpoon can we expect to see get the job done? A six-foot long crossbow, that’s what, which is constructed using a pair of truck carriage springs, while the string itself is made from a half-inch-thick steel cable.

Capable of generating a force level of up to 1,000 pounds, the bow currently points towards the floor for safety reasons. NASA’s Bill Steigerwald claims that it “could potentially launch test harpoon tips about a mile if it was angled upwards,” hence the precaution. As for the kind of arrow used, it will be a very special one, sporting a collection chamber within the hollow tip itself that is powerful enough to penetrate the comet’s surface, and close itself tightly after grabbing a piece of sample for study later on. At least this proof-of-concept beats bringing a comet down with all its potential destructive power.

Filed in Gadgets..

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