In this episode of First Principles, we'll learn about asteroids, the telescopes that find them, and the satellites that protect us against them. ✧ In 2004, astronomers discovered a new, 60-million-ton asteroid hurtling towards Earth. They scrambled the world's best telescopes, traced its path in the sky as accurately as they could, and concluded that the asteroid, 99942 Apophis, had a 2.7% chance of causing "regional devastation" here on Earth. Today, that estimate has been revised down. We now know that Apophis will make its closest pass on Friday, April 13th, 2029, missing Earth but only just barely: the asteroid will pass closer than satellites in geostationary orbit, and will be visible to the naked eye. Exactly how we know that — and what we would do if we determined an asteroid really *was* heading our way — is the focus of today's episode. In this episode, we'll visit the telescope that discovered Pluto, one of the biggest optical reflecting telescopes in the world, and the factory floor of @AstroForge, a company building satellites for asteroid mining and planetary defense. Special thanks to @MattGialich, whose connections to Lowell Observatory made this episode possible — and whose meteorite collection is the envy of space nerds everywhere. ✧ 00:00 — Asteroids & Apophis 1:08 — Pluto Discovery Telescope Overview 1:57 — Pluto Discovery, Tracking 2:34 — Pluto Discovery, Optics 3:38 — Pluto Discovery, Sensor 5:06 — Lowell Discovery Telescope Overview 5:24 — Lowell Discovery, Tracking 7:08 — Lowell Discovery, Optics 8:07 — Lowell Discovery, Sensor 9:35 — Driving the Lowell Discovery Telescope 11:26 — The @AstroForge Satellite Factory 13:46 — How AstroForge Deflects Asteroids 14:49 — AstroForge 1.5 kW Laser Demo

Here it is: my 12,000 word report on Space Warfighting. Handed it to Space Force leadership two weeks ago, and it's now public. My core argument: No amount of wishful thinking can keep us from having to fight a space war. So we had better learn how to win one. Contents: The First Principles of Space Warfighting ▸ Space is close to earth, but it’s hard to get there. ▸ Orbits are predictable, but tracking objects in space is hard. ▸ Space is physically massive, but operationally small. How To Win a Space War ▸ Maximize upmass to orbit. ▸ Scale commercial satellite manufacturing. ▸ Disaggregate and proliferate military satellite systems. ▸ Dominate the cold war. ▸ Defend the domain.

Overnight, China successfully launched a new medium-class rocket to orbit — Long March 12B. Looks like they gave no airspace notice (!), and carried suspiciously Starlink-shaped satellites to orbit... all on their first try. China's space industry is catching up to ours, fast.

I want to fund a space warfighting prime. Space is a unique domain. It's huge, hostile, and fragile — so we need tech that can help America secure outer space *while preserving the domain itself.* If you're thinking about the future of space and defense, please get in touch.