KBO encounters Options

[xtruel]

Hi,

I’m regular follower of NH and I’m also interested in the 2nd leg of the mission, i.e the 2016+ KBOs encounters. Does anyone know when operations about this leg (starting with searching objects of interest with HST or some other earth-based means, I suppose) are expected to begin ?

[tasp]

Not sure I am thinking this through correctly, but if the number of smaller objects increases fast enough, do we get to the statistical likelihood of a useful non targeted encounter (light curve, size determination, confirm no satellite/binariness) of any objects in the 5 km size?

Maybe a better question is, are there enough 5 km 'rocks' that the possibility of useful science (with no additional fuel used) in a 6 year XM exists ?

Seems like the NH spacecraft 'useful encounter sphere' is rather large, and as it traverses the belt would it intersect anything tiny but interesting?

[Alan Stern]

Not sure I am thinking this through correctly, but if the number of smaller objects increases fast enough, do we get to the statistical likelihood of a useful non targeted encounter (light curve, size determination, confirm no satellite/binariness) of any objects in the 5 km size?

Maybe a better question is, are there enough 5 km 'rocks' that the possibility of useful science (with no additional fuel used) in a 6 year XM exists ?

Seems like the NH spacecraft 'useful encounter sphere' is rather large, and as it traverses the belt would it intersect anything tiny but interesting?

Could be, but no one knows (i) how many objects there are that small-- or how to see them from Earth, so it's impossible to estimate well and even harder to find one and aim for it. NH can't do the job-- the imaging FOVs are too small and the bit rates too low. Believe me, we've thought of all this years ago.

Alan