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[i]Anatoly Perminov, chief of Russia's Federal Space Agency, said Wednesday that his agency will hold a special meeting to discuss a potential mission to the asteroid Apophis, according to the Associated Press. Perminov spoke on Golos Rossii radio and said NASA and other foreign space agencies would be invited to participate in the mission once the details are finalized, the AP reported. "Calculations show that it's possible to create a special purpose spacecraft within the time we have, which would help avoid the collision without destroying it [the asteroid] and without detonating any nuclear charges," the AP quoted Perminov as saying. "The threat of collision can be averted." Perminov did not elaborate how the Russian spacecraft would deflect Apophis from its near-Earth course, though he did say nuclear explosions would not be involved. Past studies have weighed using everything from nuclear weapons and solar sails to rocket engines, robotic swarms and old-fashioned paint to protect Earth from space rocks. Apophis has only an extremely remote chance of slamming into Earth when it swings by on April 13, 2029. The asteroid will fly within 18,300 miles (29,450 km) of Earth -- a record close shave by a space rock -- on that day. Current odds calculated by NASA give it a 1-in-250,000 chance of hitting Earth. Apophis' second near pass by Earth comes in 2068, when the space rock has a three-in-a-million chance (or about 1-in-333,000) of endangering the planet, NASA scientists have said...[/i]
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